New York City is next stop for NHL labor talks

By Raleigh McPherson

NEW YORK (TheSportsEncounter) July 31, 2012: The National Hockey League franchise owners and the NHL Players Association will meet yet again this week in New York City to further their NHL Labor Talks.

The existing NHL labor agreement is expiring on September 15, 2012 and most of the NHL fans are still in a fix about the future of the NHL 2013 season as many of them fear a 2004-like situation when the NHL organizers had to lose the whole season due to differences on the labor deal.

However, things are not that murky out there as far as the NHL labor talks are concerned because both the NHL and NHL Players Association are giving it their full might and time to hash out a new NHL Labor Deal. The two sides held meetings in Toronto for three days last week and discussed issues like players’ pensions, ice conditions, length of training camps, and team discipline.

The NHL fans, who fear loss of yet another NHL season in case the talks fail to fetch an agreement by September 15, 2012, must be happy with the way the both sides have amicably met each other and discussed the NHL Labor Deal.

The NHL put forward their first collective bargaining deal proposal with the NHL Players Association on July 13, 2012 which focused mainly decreased share of hockey-related revenues, term limits on contracts, and a 22 percent salary rollback.

Thereafter, the NHL Players Association, also known as NHLPA, took their time to go through the proposal and requested additional information before coming up with their version of the proposal.

NHL Labor Talks 2012

While the NHL labor talks are going on, the biggest cause of concern for the NHL fans was the start of the NHL 2013 season but NHL experts are of the belief that even if the two sides take these NHL labor deal negotiations well over September 15 deadline, the new NHL season will commence on its due date on the previous terms and conditions.

Fehr told media after holding a meeting with the NHLPA, "There's nothing magic about September 15, 2012. The law is that if you don't have a new agreement, and as long as both sides are willing to keep negotiating, you can continue to play under the terms of the old one until you reach an agreement”.

And the NHL fans want nothing but the real NHL action which is scheduled to start this October and if the NHL and the NHLPA fail to reach a labor deal even then they are assured of the NHL 2012-13 Season.

However, any hardliner approach may lead negotiations to collapse and if such a situation arises only then the NHL 2013 season would not be starting on due date therefore the upcoming negotiation sessions between the NHL executives and NHL Players Association will hold the key. The two sides next meet in Manhattan area of New York City on July 31 and August 1, 2012.