Wishful Thinking: NHL Players Ready To Talk Salary Cap?

A handful of hockey people spent five hours together on Wednesday and agreed to meet again Thursday. Half of them were from the NHL, half from the NHL Players' Association. That, in itself, represents progress in a labor dispute that has been bogged down since day one.

Citing unnamed sources, Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun says the NHLPA has tabled a proposal that includes a potential salary cap:

"Under the deal being discussed by the two sides, the NHLPA has asked the league to accept an agreement without a salary cap for the first three seasons. If it doesn't work, the source said, the league would be allowed to implement a cap in the final three years."

"But if the NHLPA's proposal allows each team to have cost certainty and make money, the source said there would be no cap. The source added that the league was willing to discuss the idea, but wasn't sure if it was going to be enough to allow NHL hockey to be played this season."

If the report is in any way accurate, it would mark a point of no return for the Players' Association. For the past several years, the very phrase "salary cap" was enough to make an NHL player break out in hives. Nor were they fooled by the various weasel words used to disguise a salary cap - like "cost certainty" or "linkage."

Once you start talking that language there is no turning back, as the NHLPA surely understands.

Both sides have characterized this week's meetings as exploratory talks rather than formal negotiations. It is almost certainly too late to save the 2004-05 NHL season. But any progress made could pave the way for a collective agreement that will get next season started on time.

Update: Jan. 20 - NHL VP Bill Daly emerged from Thursday's meeting saying the two sides had "good dialogue" but remain seperated by "strong philosophical differences." The comments suggest that the Ottawa Sun report is either exaggerated or wrong.