Tuesday negotiations on Labour Deal last just two hours between League, Players' Association -NHL Update
The National Hockey League (NHL) and Players’ Association members got up after just two hours after their first meeting after a day of rest, which definitely gave birth to rumours about another serious deadlock that could have extended the lockout even further
now.
While fans were expecting a miracle to happen in the upcoming days, there was literally “no progress” according to NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly.
"Today wasn't overly encouraging, that's for sure," Daly said after the latest meeting toward establishing a new Collective Bargaining Agreement, according to NHL.com. "I think it goes back to us really tackling the main issues that are at issue in this
negotiation and seeing if we have some traction toward some middle ground.”
Both sides are looking for a long-term deal, but seeing how they can barely manage to sit in the same room with each other just goes to show the intensity of the whole process.
"We're looking for a long-term deal that's fair for the players, fair for the teams and good for the fans. That's what we want out of this negotiation and we need a negotiating partner to get there," Daly added.
According to the Deputy Commissioner, the league has already suffered a $100 million due to the cancellation of all the preseason games, and it definitely could have been avoided if both sides worked out a deal previously.
They sat down in June, earlier this year, to begin talks, but a serious deadlock came about after the previous labour deal ended on September 15, 2012.
It is also reported that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman is in contact with NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr, but those one-on-one talks are still yet to bear any fruit.
Daly also added that a federal mediator can be brought in from Washington, but he does not see the situation as having gone that far up until now, but could be called in when in need. There is still regular communication between the two stakeholders, but
until and unless there is enough progress, nothing can be said about when the lockout will potentially come to an end.
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