azcentral.com
The NHL and the players' association met for 1 1/2 hours Friday in Toronto and plan to talk more next week.
The meeting that began around noon was the first between the sides since Feb. 19 - three days after commissioner Gary Bettman canceled the 2004-05 season.
Bettman and players' association executive director Bob Goodenow were back at the table Friday after sitting out the last session.
"Gary and I engaged in general discussions today and we plan to meet again next week for further dialogue," Goodenow said in a statement. "There were no proposals exchanged today."
The previous session had Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux in the room, but the presence of the Hall of Famers-turned-owners wasn't enough to help broker a deal and overturn Bettman's historic announcement.
The NHL is the first major sports league in North America to lose an entire season to a labor dispute. The league invited the union back to the table quickly because it would like to get an agreement in place so the draft can be held on time in June, and relaunching plans for next season can be put into effect.
The players wanted to take more of a break from negotiations. They had less of an incentive to initiate talks now because they are not due to be paid again until next season.
All previous offers were off the table, including the league's decision to drop its demand for cost certainty and the union's willingness to accept a salary cap in return.
By many accounts, these talks were back at the square one stage.
Bettman said he remains committed to starting next season on time and with a collective bargaining agreement with the union. But if that doesn't occur, he will consider using replacement players to ensure there is hockey in the fall.
The NHL and the players' association met for 1 1/2 hours Friday in Toronto and plan to talk more next week.
The meeting that began around noon was the first between the sides since Feb. 19 - three days after commissioner Gary Bettman canceled the 2004-05 season.
Bettman and players' association executive director Bob Goodenow were back at the table Friday after sitting out the last session.
"Gary and I engaged in general discussions today and we plan to meet again next week for further dialogue," Goodenow said in a statement. "There were no proposals exchanged today."
The previous session had Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux in the room, but the presence of the Hall of Famers-turned-owners wasn't enough to help broker a deal and overturn Bettman's historic announcement.
The NHL is the first major sports league in North America to lose an entire season to a labor dispute. The league invited the union back to the table quickly because it would like to get an agreement in place so the draft can be held on time in June, and relaunching plans for next season can be put into effect.
The players wanted to take more of a break from negotiations. They had less of an incentive to initiate talks now because they are not due to be paid again until next season.
All previous offers were off the table, including the league's decision to drop its demand for cost certainty and the union's willingness to accept a salary cap in return.
By many accounts, these talks were back at the square one stage.
Bettman said he remains committed to starting next season on time and with a collective bargaining agreement with the union. But if that doesn't occur, he will consider using replacement players to ensure there is hockey in the fall.
