No movement on NHL; world junior tournament to be aired in U.S.

The NHL and NHL Players’ Assn. have not had recent contact and nothing new is planned, NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said on Monday.

The league on Friday filed a class-action suit in U.S. District Court in New York alleging the union’s plans to dissolve by filing a disclaimer of interest was “a subversion of the collective bargaining process” and sought confirmation of the legality of the lockout it imposed on Sept. 15. The NHL also filed an unfair labor practices charge against the union with the National Labor Relations Board.

The two sides could still negotiate while the legal maneuvering continues, and a similar disclaimer of interest filed a year ago by the National Basketball Players Assn. in its dispute with the NBA was followed within two weeks by a resolution and a new collective bargaining agreement.

Daly said via email that he did not expect the litigation “will play an immediate role.” He added, “The PA knows where we are and what would get a deal done. We will see how they decide to play it.”

The NHLPA did not respond to a request for comment.

While it appears there won’t be NHL hockey for a while, fans looking for a substitute can follow the upcoming World Junior Championships and get a look at future stars.

The NHL Network-U.S. and NHL.com will air live broadcasts for the tournament, to be played Dec. 26-Jan. 5 in Ufa, Russia. All games involving the U.S. team will be available.

Here’s a link to the schedule.

NHL.com will provide a live stream of all Team USA tournament games that will be available only in the U.S. Team USA will be coached by former NHL standout Phil Housley,
the highest-scoring U.S.-born defenseman in NHL history.

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