Latest news with #NHLPA
NBC Sports
19 hours ago
- Business
- NBC Sports
Gary Bettman says NHL-NHLPA talks on a new CBA are ‘in really good shape'
EDMONTON, Alberta — Negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement are progressing well, though there is no timeline on reaching a deal, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said Wednesday. Bettman, at his annual state of the league address prior to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, said the sides are 'having very constructive, professional, cordial dialogue.' Talks did not begin until April, and there is still quite some time until the current CBA expires in September 2026. 'I don't have an announcement to make today that we have a deal, but we have more than a year to go and I think we're in really good shape, having really good discussions,' Bettman said. 'That's a testament to Marty Walsh and Ron Hainsey and people at the Players' Association who have been working tirelessly with us.' Walsh said the league and union were having good ongoing conversations, adding there are not major issues on the table to quibble over. 'It's moving steady, it's moving forward and I feel good with where we are and we'll see what happens,' Walsh said. 'It gets complicated at certain times, any collective bargaining agreement, but it's not where it was in the past here where you're seeing national disputes between organized labor and companies.' Hainsey, the NHLPA's assistant executive director, expects the constant meetings to continue during the final in Edmonton and South Florida. 'We're all in the same place at the same time,' Hainsey said. 'There are multiple days in between these games where we can find something for ourselves to do.' No Russians in Olympics Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said the league does not expect Russian players to participate in the Olympics next year. That would be status quo for the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation, which has banned Russian teams since that country's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Walsh said players he has spoken to are disappointed not to be able to participate in Milan, the first Olympics with NHL participation since 2014. 'It's out of their control, and there's not much they can do,' Walsh said. 'There's not much they can do with what's happening in Ukraine and Russia, and they want to play best on best. We hear it all the time. They want to play best on best and we were hoping that by this point in time, the conflict or the war would not be where it is.' Expansion? Daly said the league is not engaging in a formal expansion process to go beyond 32 teams, but officials are listening to potential ownership groups about any proposals. 'If somebody wants to essentially apply for an expansion franchise and has all the requisite elements that we would look for in an expansion franchise, we would raise it with the Board of Governors and see if they have any interest in it,' Daly said. 'There are some people we've talked to more than others, but there's a lot of interest, which I think we're gratified with.'
CBC
19 hours ago
- Business
- CBC
Bettman says NHL, NHLPA in 'really good shape' on talks for new collective agreement
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman says the league and its union are in "really good shape" with negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement. Speaking ahead of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final rematch between the Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers, he added that this round of talks with NHL Players' Association executive director Marty Walsh are "no comparison" to past CBA discussions. "We are having very constructive, professional, cordial dialogue," Bettman said Wednesday. "We started a little bit later than we had anticipated for a variety of reasons on both sides, so I don't have an announcement to make that we have a deal." The current CBA, which was extended during the COVID-19 pandemic with the NHL's financial situation on shaky ground, is set to expire Sept. 15, 2026. "We have more than a year to go," Bettman continued. "I think we're in really good shape, having really good discussions; we're in a really good place in terms of our relationship." Walsh held a media scrum with reporters after Bettman's availability and called conversations "good" and "ongoing." "It's moving steady, it's moving forward," he said. "I feel good with where we are, and we'll see what happens. It gets complicated at certain times -- any collective bargaining agreement -- but it's not where it was in the past here where you're seeing national disputes between organized labour and companies." Walsh, who took over from former union head Donald Fehr in February 2023, added the league and players are working through "different pulls on both sides." The positive tone is a welcome sign for fans of a league that lost the entire 2004-05 season to a lockout and went through labour disruptions that shortened both the 1994-95 and 2012-13 campaigns. Asked directly on when a deal might be signed, Walsh replied: "We didn't start (negotiations) until April, so a slow start there; I'm not going to give any timeline on that." Olympic question The NHL is set to return to the Olympics next year in Italy. Deputy commissioner Bill Daly said the league doesn't expect the International Olympic Committee or the International Ice Hockey Federation to change its ban on the participation of Russian teams, which means NHLers from that country, as things stand, will be barred from the first Games involving the world's best players since 2014 due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Talking growth Daly said the NHL has received a lot of interest from markets looking for expansion teams -- Atlanta and Houston are believed to be on the list -- but it won't be going through a formal process to add to its 32 clubs. "If somebody wants to essentially apply for an expansion franchise and has all the requisite elements that we would look for in an expansion franchise, we would raise it with the board of governors and see if they have any interest," Daly said. "There are some people we've talked to more than others, but there's a lot of interest, which I think we're gratified with."
Washington Post
a day ago
- Business
- Washington Post
Gary Bettman says NHL-NHLPA talks on a new CBA are 'in really good shape'
EDMONTON, Alberta — Negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement are progressing well, though there is no timeline on reaching a deal, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said Wednesday. Bettman, at his annual state of the league address prior to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, said the sides are 'having very constructive, professional, cordial dialogue.' Talks did not begin until April , and there is still quite some time until the current CBA expires in September 2026.
Hindustan Times
a day ago
- Business
- Hindustan Times
Gary Bettman says NHL-NHLPA talks on a new CBA are 'in really good shape'
EDMONTON, Alberta — Negotiations on a new collective bargaining agreement are progressing well, though there is no timeline on reaching a deal, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh said Wednesday. Bettman, at his annual state of the league address prior to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Final, said the sides are 'having very constructive, professional, cordial dialogue.' Talks did not begin until April, and there is still quite some time until the current CBA expires in September 2026. 'I don't have an announcement to make today that we have a deal, but we have more than a year to go and I think we're in really good shape, having really good discussions,' Bettman said. 'That's a testament to Marty Walsh and Ron Hainsey and people at the Players' Association who have been working tirelessly with us.' Walsh said the league and union were having good ongoing conversations, adding there are not major issues on the table to quibble over. 'It's moving steady, it's moving forward and I feel good with where we are and we'll see what happens,' Walsh said. "It gets complicated at certain times, any collective bargaining agreement, but it's not where it was in the past here where you're seeing national disputes between organized labor and companies.' Hainsey, the NHLPA's assistant executive director, expects the constant meetings to continue during the final in Edmonton and South Florida. 'We're all in the same place at the same time,' Hainsey said. "There are multiple days in between these games where we can find something for ourselves to do.' Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said the league does not expect Russian players to participate in the Olympics next year. That would be status quo for the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation, which has banned Russian teams since that country's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Walsh said players he has spoken to are disappointed not to be able to participate in Milan, the first Olympics with NHL participation since 2014. 'It's out of their control, and there's not much they can do,' Walsh said. "There's not much they can do with what's happening in Ukraine and Russia, and they want to play best on best. We hear it all the time. They want to play best on best and we were hoping that by this point in time, the conflict or the war would not be where it is.' Daly said the league is not engaging in a formal expansion process to go beyond 32 teams, but officials are listening to potential ownership groups about any proposals. 'If somebody wants to essentially apply for an expansion franchise and has all the requisite elements that we would look for in an expansion franchise, we would raise it with the Board of Governors and see if they have any interest in it,' Daly said. "There are some people we've talked to more than others, but there's a lot of interest, which I think we're gratified with.' NHL playoffs: /hub/stanley-cup and /hub/nhl
Reuters
a day ago
- Business
- Reuters
Gary Bettman: CBA discussions 'in really good shape'
June 5 - Addressing the media on Wednesday in Edmonton prior to the Oilers' Game 1 matchup with the Florida Panthers in the Stanley Cup Final, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman offered a positive assessment of the league's negotiations with the NHL Players' Association on a new collective bargaining agreement. "I think we're in really good shape, having really good discussions," Bettman said. "We're in a really good place in terms of our relationship." Bettman let reporters know that no deal was ready to be announced, but he also noted that the sides are at an early stage of negotiations. The league and the NHLPA began meeting in April, with the current CBA set to expire after the 2025-26 season. NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh struck a similar positive tone on Wednesday, describing their progress as being steady and that he felt good about where talks stood. The NHL last experienced a work stoppage during the 2012-13 season, when teams managed to play just 48 games apiece (as opposed to the normal 82 games). The league has only once lost an entire season due to lockout, in 2004-05. There were also stoppages in 1994-95 and 1992. Both sides expect talks to continue throughout the finals. "We are having very constructive, professional, cordial dialog," Bettman added. Also on Wednesday, NHL officials spoke on the topics of the Olympics and expansion, acknowledging that Russian players, at present, are still ineligible to compete at the upcoming Winter Olympics games in Milan, Italy. On expansion, it was noted that the league continues to receive interest from different markets about adding teams, but the NHL has no immediate plans to expand. Per multiple media reports, the leading expansion candidates are Atlanta and Houston. --Field Level Media
