By Austin Spears
In 2012, Finnish agency Professional Sport Services Fi Yo entered into an NHL player referral agreement with Chappaqua sports agencies Puck Agency LLC and JG Sports Agencies. The sports agencies haven’t held up their end of the bargain and now owe $887,188 according to litigation, which include notable NHL players Erik Haula (New Jersey Devils) and Juuso Välimäki (Utah Hockey Club).
Professional Sport Services Fi Yo referred hockey players to US agencies and agreed to do so with the Chappaqua sports agencies. The agencies would then negotiate the players’ contracts, off-court endorsements, and financial services. In exchange, according to an arbitration decision, Professional Sport Services would receive 50% of the commissions and endorsement fees collected by the US agencies.
The lawsuits began in 2017 when Professional Sport Services Fi Yo made an arbitration claim in Finland that Puck Agency LLC was not paying them properly. The Finland Arbitration Institute would agree and eventually award $171,920 to Professional Sport Services. However, Puck did not pay what they owed to the Finnish Company.
Professional Sport Services decided to take their case to America and sued in US District court in 2019. Judge Cathy Siebel ruled that the arbitration decision was valid, and including interest, Professional Sport Services was now owed $323,328. Puck once again did not pay what they owed.
Professional Sport Services continued to pursue their claim and created another arbitration dispute in Finland, now naming both Puck and JMG agency and demanding they be paid additional commission for NHL seasons between 2018-2023. The Finnish arbitrator again ruled in favor of Professional Sports Services, and once again, Puck and JMG did not pay.
In their latest effort to get paid, Professional Sport Services petitioned the American Federal Court in White Plains to confirm their payment. On June 7, 2024, District Judge Kenneth M. Karas again confirmed the judgment and ruled that Professional Support Services was owed $887,188 between commission, interest, arbitration, and legal fees. As of today, Puck and JMG have not paid.
Greater controversy surrounds these legal proceedings, as there are allegations that Jay Grossman, who owns and operates JMG agencies, allegedly asked players to pay agent fees directly to JMG Sports and not Puck Agency LLC before the legal proceedings expanded to include JMG.
Other NHL players involved include Kasimer Kaskisuo (Toronto Maple Leafs), Juho Lammikko (Florida Panthers), Sami Niku (Winnipeg Jets), Sebastian Repo (Florida Panthers), Pekka Rinne (Nashville Predators), and Vili Saarijarvi (Detroit Red Wings).
As Professional Sport Services Fi Yo continues to gain victories in court, it remains to be seen whether Puck and JMG will pay out the nearly million dollars they now owe.
Austin Spears is a rising junior Sport Management major at UT Austin. He is currently an analytics intern with the Texas Longhorns baseball team and plans to pursue a career in sports law.
