Labour talks on hold for holiday
NEW YORK — It’s all quiet on the NHL labour front.
Neither side expects formal negotiations to begin until at least Wednesday, after the Jewish holiday Rosh Hashanah.
The NHL locked the players out at midnight ET on Saturday when the old labour agreement expired. It’s the NHL’s fourth work stoppage in 20 years.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly and NHLPA special counsel Steve Fehr are expected to speak informally Tuesday to figure out the next steps in the negotiating process.
The two sides haven’t met for face-to-face talks since last Wednesday when the NHL countered a union proposal with a time-sensitive offer of its own.
The parties did not meet again after and the league’s offer, along with the old collective bargaining agreement, expired Saturday.
Meanwhile, Milan Michalek of the Ottawa Senators joined the small list of injured players who will continue to get paid and have access to team facilities.
Michalek underwent surgery last Tuesday in Philadelphia to repair a torn abdominal muscle he suffered while training in late August. Michalek is expected to be sidelined four-to-six weeks. Players who are injured in hockey-related activities while the previous collective bargaining agreement was still active cannot be locked out.
Michalek is scheduled to make US$4.75 million this season.
Other players who will continue to draw a paycheque due to injury include Edmonton’s Taylor Hall, Philadelphia’s Chris Pronger and Tampa Bay’s Mattias Ohlund.
In order for a player to qualify for this exemption, he must follow the counsel of team doctors.
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