National Hockey League Players Gear Up to Vote for new CBA -NHL Update
After the National Hockey League (NHL) Board of Governors ratified the new Collective Bargaining Agreement on Wednesday, it is now the turn of the players to come together and vote in order to approve it from their side and officially bring the lockout to
an end.
With over four months gone now ever since the previous labour deal came to an end on September 15, 2012, electronic voting will begin at 8 p.m. Thursday and will go all the way up until Saturday, giving the players more than enough time to approve or reject
it.
If the voting process goes smoothly and a majority of the players decide to approve the deal, sources claim that training camps will kick off as soon as this upcoming Sunday and a 48-game regular season will begin from the previously reported date of January
19th.
It was after the 113th day of the lockout that the NHL and Players’ Association agreed on mutual terms and conditions after meeting for 16 straight hours. The new deal is set for the next 10 years and will not allow any side to opt out of it before
the completion of the eighth year. The previous bargaining agreement had been effect for seven years and brought around another lockout, but not in full, and resulted in just half of the season being locked out.
Due to the lockout, fans missed out on a chance to see the much forward looked to event such as the 2013 NHL Winter Classic and All-Star Game. According to the NHL, they will release an official schedule of the games, once the ratification process is completed
entirely.
It is currently a busy time around the NHL as players are making a comeback from foreign leagues, others are being contacted about the return process and some are now looking to sign on to teams as they remain free agents and were unable to sign prior to
the lockout coming into effect.
Updates should be expected on the issue in the next 24-48 hours as both sides continue working to get a hockey season back on track.
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