NEW YORK - The NHLPA has countered the NHLs latest CBA offer again and both sides are expected to resume talks later Wednesday evening.
The two sides met for about an hour this afternoon at league headquarters in Manhattan.
We had a brief meeting and made some responses to the information we received, said Donald Fehr, executive director of the players union.
The NHL people are looking at it and well hear from them when its completed.
The league did not comment on todays developments.
One source said the unions pension plan remains a key issue in the talks. Its more about who will fund it and who will assume liability.
There have been some dubious owners in the NHL over the past 20 years and the union is wary of what happens if an owner goes bankrupt. Who assumes the liability if that occurs? The league? A new owner? What if the franchise folded or moved? These are just some of the questions the union has raised on the issue.
The players also have until midnight to file a disclaimer of interest that would dissolve the union, allowing players to anti-trust suits against the league.
Indications are that if the union decides not to file, it wont ask for an extension, but simply put the matter aside and re-vote on the issue down the line if needed -- especially, if a new CBA is not reached by the leagues Jan. 11 deadline.
There are, however, some legal hurdles that could prevent such action, the result of the NHL's class action suit to declare the lockout legal well in advance of the unions move.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said late Tuesday he was more focused on getting a new CBA in place by Jan. 11, than on any court filing.
Late Tuesday, the league responded to the unions latest counter-offer with another offer of is own.
They did make a comprehensive response to what we gave them on Monday, Fehr told reporters.
We asked a couple of questions, and now what we have to do is go through the document, try to make some sense out of it, compare it and see what the appropriate thing is to do next.
Bettman wouldnt comment on the leagues latest offering or the unions new counter-offer today.
There were certain things that the players' association asked for that we agreed to, there were some things that we moved in their direction, and there were other things that we said no, he said. That's part of the process.
Various news agencies reported that pensions and revenue-sharing were discussed in detail at smaller group sessions, with both sides nearing an agreement on revenue sharing and moving farther apart on pensions.
Tuesdays full meeting between both sides was pushed back to 9 p.m. a four-hour delay - then lasted about an hour.
Unlike past meetings, both sides seemed happy that there was genuine dialogue and predicted it would continue.
There is no guarantee theyll be an agreement, but there is finally some hope that such will happen given both sides now seem to have a sense of urgency in ending the lockout.
Bettman has said that to play a shortened, 48-game season, the NHL needs a CBA in place by Jan. 11 with training camps opening the next day and the season starting on Jan. 19.
The Associated Press contributed to this story.
E-mail Tim Panaccio at tpanotch@comcast.net
