The NHL and the NHLPA agreed to resume talks on Tuesday to try and end the impasse over hockey related revenue sharing.
Both parties were satisfied with the progress of Saturday's talks and they were hopeful that some deal to resolve the issue could be agreed upon sooner rather than later. Nobody is happy with so many games being scrapped and everyone involved are desperate to save the remaining games.
Before Saturday's talks, the league and union representatives did not meet for more than two weeks. After several rounds of talks, initially, to come to some kind of agreement, the league scrapped games all games through November.
In such a situation when NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly and players' unions' special counsel Steve Fehr decided to meet on Saturday, everybody welcomed the decision. They met at an undisclosed location and finally the talks resumed.
"We had a series of meetings over the course of the day and had a good, frank discussion on the most important issues separating us," Daly said.
During several telephonic conversations, Daly and Fehr had identified common points to be discussed in a meeting. It was only after that they actually met on Saturday and the negotiation process began. "Hopefully we can continue the dialogue, expand the group, and make steady progress," Fehr said.
Involved parties have not disclosed the points on which their talks were based on Saturday.
"I'm not in a position to talk substance about agenda or expectations," Daly wrote Tuesday in an email to The Associated Press.
It's also not sure who would participate in the negotiation process with Daly and Fehr on Tuesday. It is believed that NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr may also be involved.
The reason for the disagreement between the league and the union is both the parties want a bigger share of the pie, with neither ready to yield. The NHLPA wants to ensure that the current players' contracts should be paid with the changes made in the new collective bargaining agreement not having an immediate effect.
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