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Hope Building Towards the Weekend... Why I have it, What it will take...

September 27, 2012, 12:35 PM ET [70 Comments]
Eklund
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There is no question right now both the NHL and the NHLPA are gun shy and afraid to make the next move. The official word is both sides are meeting tomorrow in Toronto to discuss "non-core issues." The VERY strong rumor is the NHLPA has a new proposal in their back pocket should things get going in a positive direction.

However I would not expect the proposal to become public until the NHLPA wants it to be. If you remember the NHLPA's last proposal also came by surprise during a regular meeting. There are people at the NHL who are extremely curious about the possible NHLPA proposal...curious to the point where I would almost say there is a little excitement in the air.

The rumor is the NHLPA will present a proposal which slowly steps down toward 50% which starts To get close to what the NHL really wants out of this CBA. A drop-down next year to say 55% then 52% then settling around 50% would have very little effect on the current NHL salaries when you take into account rising revenues year after year.

I really am starting to believe that this is the kind of deal we're going to see. This is the end game both sides know is inevitable.

The players largest concern right now is that current contracts will be honored as close to full as possible. Such an incremental step backwards towards where the NHL wants to go could get this done...if the step backwards was aggressive enough...

All the other issues could be worked out relatively quickly if this main issue is decided upon.

Right now we appear to be at a crossroads and this weekend meetings are just going to be enormous in determining when we will will not once again see NHL hockey.

I remain optimistic despite crazy amounts of pessimism surrounding me in the media. My optimism stems from the basic fact that there is nothing but money here...not the salary cap to fight for, no major issues... just who gets what? If the players miss More than four paychecks, or the owners miss more than three months, the extra percentages either side gains will be lost anyway. Both sides know this. Both sides understand the point at which it doesn't make sense to dig in any longer.

The pessimism existing in the media is very legitimate. Both sides are definitely using the media to get out how dire their individual situations are. So I am not trying to get caught up in those games. I am trying to talk to people at other levels who I know will tell it to me straight. I really don't like being played to spread gloom and doom or to pressure the other side. We all know this is just about money, and if both sides can't come to an agreement...well, then no one gets paid.


As dire as it may have been painted, honestly what is most important, to this point, is both sides have actually been more rational than they are emotional. The biggest fear of course exists in the fact that soon emotion could take a stronger hold and then this battle could escalate.

The players biggest fear is the NHL is simply negotiating like they did last time with their only intention being to break them. Players have told me this over and over again. And from where they sit it is a very legitimate fear. The NHL hasn't done themselves any favors in the way they've handled the player's fears. The NHL hasn't given the players any real reasons to think things are different than they were in 2004. My hope is this weekend the NHL will change that. Not something I'm guaranteeing, just something I am sensing from talking to a lot of people.

We will see...

Meanwhile, we at Hockeybuzz are going to step up and start bringing you more entertaining hockey content not relating to the lockout. We know you visit us to catch up with the lockout news, but when there isn't news we want to be the website you turn to when you want to talk about the game itself... There is no point in writing articles day after day saying "no progress." You need a hockey fix and we do too. We have a few exciting things to tell you about over the next week or so...so stay tuned.
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