It may have been the most bizarre day in NHL history.
Keeping in mind that the 2004-05 regular season and playoffs were canceled on Wednesday, it's difficult to explain and understand what happened on Friday.
First came news that the NHL and NHLPA would meet in New York City on Saturday morning, the first formal communication since the two sides exchanged terse letters on Tuesday night. Ostensibly, the meeting is taking place because of a groundswell of activity from some owners, some general managers, some player agents and some players who believe this season can be 'un-canceled' as quickly as it was canceled on Wednesday.
The news of the meeting sent shockwaves throughout the hockey community and renewed hope that the season may yet be saved.
Not long after that news broke, the Hockey News website posted a stunning story, quoting an unnamed player as saying the NHL and NHLPA had reached an agreement in principle, suggesting Saturday's meeting would see the cancellation reversed.
That basically turned the hockey world upside-down.
As the NHLPA put out a release described the story as "totally false", many in the hockey world from players, to agents, to team personnel, were talking it up as if the deal was virtually done. But as the night wore on, the reality started to dawn on people - the deal isn't done.
The NHL put an exclamation point on that when it categorically denied the Hockey News story.
And yet, the hockey community remains abuzz.
A big part of the reason for that buzz is the involvement of Phoenix owner Wayne Gretzky and Pittsburgh owner Mario Lemieux, who flew to New York on Friday to become involved in the process. Gretzky and Lemieux were two of many people on both sides o the labour fence who've become mobilized in the last few days, desperately trying to broker a deal.
All of that backroom chatter fueled the speculation that the NHL and NHLPA were closing in on an agreement on the specific issue of the salary cap number. On Tuesday, the NHL had presented a final offer of $42.5 million. The NHLPA responded with a softer cap of $49 million. Rumours suggested that perhaps the two sides would saw off at around $45 million.
There is just one problem. NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman received significant negative reaction from some of his owners for the $42.5 million offer and the consensus seems to be, even now, that $45 million simply won't fly with the majority of the NHL board of governors. There is also some talk that $42.5 million might work for the players in the first year of the deal if it is ramped up by $500,000 a year for the balance of the contract, which would top it out at $45 million. That may be more palatable to some owners, but will it fly with the players?
That's a good question, but it's difficult to get a real grasp of what's really going on within the rank and file of the NHLPA.
On Friday, Mike Modano of the Dallas Stars intimated that NHLPA executive director Bob Goodenow may have lost control of the union. In fact, countless players and many agents spent much of Friday speculating on the future of the man who has headed the NHLPA since 1992.
Goodenow is not expected to attend Saturday's meeting in New York, but Bettman may not be there either. Both, however, are expected to be in New York and to be available if needed.
Many players and agents said that NHLPA president Trevor Linden and NHLPA executive Mike Gartner have been taking a much more active role in recent days, leading to more speculation that Goodenow is becoming less involved.
But Gartner and others within the NHLPA maintain that Goodenow remains in charge, and that their roles are no greater or lesser than they have been in the past and that rumours of Goodenow's demise are greatly exaggerated.
It's a safe bet that all the rumour mongering on Friday, and the apparently erroneous reports of an agreement in principle being reached, are not necessarily going to help the process. Despite the sudden surge of optimism that the season can be saved, there is still much work to be done on the solitary issue of a salary cap figure and concept, to say nothing of a myriad of other critical issues that need to be dealt with.
All this optimism was clearly misplaced on Friday. That isn't to say the NHL and NHLPA can't pull a rabbit out of the hat, but it's not nearly the slam dunk so many people are suggesting now that the two sides are going back to the table.
All we know for sure is the two sides are meeting, the dynamic has changed somewhat with the addition of people like Gretzky, Lemieux and Gartner, but remember one thing - until further notice, the season is still very much canceled.
Stay tuned. If Friday was bizarre, and it was, who knows what Saturday will bring.
For TSN.ca, I'm Bob McKenzie