Whether your sympathies lie with the National Hockey League owners or players, the Philadelphia Flyers’ signing of Shea Weber is a glaring example what’s wrong with the current collective bargaining agreement.

Just days after the NHL owners presented an offer to the players crying poor, the Flyers — still miffed at losing out on the Zach Parise sweepstakes — made a brazen move, signing restricted free agent Shea Weber to a 14-year, $110-million offer sheet. The Nashville Predators have until Thursday to match the deal for their two-time Norris Trophy finalist.

Under the current CBA, the Flyers’ attack is perfectly legal – and almost impossible for the Predators to match.

For the first four years of the deal, Weber will reportedly make only $1 million in salary, but will get $13 million annually in bonuses. For the two years after that, he’ll get $4 million in salary and $8 million per year in bonuses. Over the final eight years, he’ll get $30 million in salary.

You’ve got to hand it to Flyers GM Paul Holmgren – not only did he take full advantage of loopholes in the existing CBA, he managed to circumvent the next one, too.

By offering to pay Weber $14 million for the first four years, he isn’t paying one player more than 20 per cent of the salary cap – which works out to $14.06 million. And by signing Weber to a 14-year deal, the Flyers ensure they aren’t signing him beyond his 40th birthday, which is forbidden under the current agreement.

And, of course, there’s nothing illegal about a long-term deal. Parise and Ryan Suter signed 13-year deals earlier this summer with the Minnesota Wild. And Rick DiPietro and Ilya Kovalchuk are playing under 15-year contracts.

But by sneaking the offer in just prior to the expiration of the CBA, it means Weber’s contract won’t be affected by a new deal between the owners and players, save for a possible rollback to his salary – which is only $1 million, remember.

Because the Flyers front-loaded the deal, the Predators – clearly one of the have-not teams in the NHL – would have to pay Weber $28 million to stay for just one year before they can trade him. If they don't match the offer, they will get four low, first-round picks from the Flyers as compensation – essentially forcing them into perpetual rebuilding mode for years to come.

This type of franchise bullying is exactly why the collective bargaining agreement needs to be overhauled. The massive, front-loaded contracts we’re seeing in free-agent signings and offer sheets show there are flaws in the current system and the disparity between have- and have-not teams is as big as it ever has been. The Predators will always struggle to be a legitimate contender if deeper-pocketed teams can steal away their players every summer.

That wasn’t supposed to happen under the current CBA, which was intended to guarantee that all 30 teams were financially healthy and competing on a level playing field.

If bonus money counted against the salary cap and the Flyers were penalized financially for spending over a certain amount, they might think twice about throwing money at Weber. And if that penalty money went directly to lower-income teams like Nashville, the Predators would have a better chance at re-signing their star players.

The result would be more financial parity, healthier franchises from top to bottom and stable jobs for players. Win-win.

This isn’t a new concept. The New York Yankees support the Kansas City Royals through revenue-sharing. The Green Bay Packers are able to re-sign Aaron Rogers and win a Super Bowl through revenue-sharing. The NHL is a $3.3 billion business. There is ample money to spread around to ensure there are 30 teams competing on a level playing field.

So as negotiations between owners and players drag on through the summer and fall, remember this deal. Yes, at $14 million a season, Weber will be one of many overpaid players in the NHL. But if have-not teams are being run over by their deep-pocketed peers, the system will need to be fixed before the next season can begin.

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