Unless one side has a sudden change of heart, it appears collective bargaining agreement discussions between the NHL and the NHL Players' Association have reached a stalemate.
No meetings are scheduled and it doesn't appear as if there will be any scheduled in the immediate future.
NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly sees little reason to continue negotiations based on the Players' Association's recent stance.
"They have made it clear to us that they have very little interest in the proposal we made last Tuesday," said Daly. "They also told us they have no intention of making a new proposal. I'm not sure what we would be meeting about."
When asked if the negotiations may slip into a deep freeze, Daly responded in a brief but very telling manner. "I suspect so," he said. "Back to the drawing board. Unfortunate."
NHLPA counsel Steve Fehr responded to the league's comments.
"The league is apparently unwilling to meet," said Fehr. "That is unfortunate, as it is hard to make progress without talking."
Late Tuesday afternoon, the NHLPA conducted a conference call for executive board members and according to a union spokesman, following the call, the players informed the NHL they are willing to meet at any point, without preconditions, to try and reach an agreement.
