Time is running out on the NHL and NHLPA to reach a new collective bargaining agreement, and the recent lengthy negotiations don't exactly inspire optimism that the puck will be dropped in 2012.
The meetings were scheduled to take place between just the players and the owners in the hopes of solving differences, since consulting a federal mediation agency didn't work and the presence of commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr was not helping matters.
Unfortunately, the two sides could not come to an agreement despite meeting for hours on end on Tuesday and Wednesday, and the tension only got worse as the day progressed, according to Sporting News reporter Sean Gentille.
Bettman and Fehr returned for Thursday's showdown, and according to TSN reporter Bob McKenzie, relations have soured even further in light of the presence of the two sides' biggest wigs:
I can tell you there's a hugely negative vibe emanating from both sides right now. Keeping this process on rails today will be challenging.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) December 6, 2012
Something is wrong when McKenzie can only report about ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NHL
Article written by Matt Fitzgerald
NHL Lockout 2012: Lengthy Negotiations Leave No Room for Optimism
December 6th, 2012 by Matt Fitzgerald Leave a reply »
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