CBA Negotiations – Where We’re At

 

 

Another day, another CBA update. Happy new year!

In case you missed it, the league forwarded a comprehensive proposal to the players union last week. Since that time, the two sides have met several times and exchanged more proposals, including the PA’s recent counter today.

There remains a number of salient issues the combatants have yet to agree on, including the funding of player pensions and the amount of cap/escrow for next season, but with a mid-January deadline to save a 2012-13 season rapidly approaching, it seems the league and the players are finally sitting down and actually negotiating in earnest.

Another deadline looming large on the horizon is the player’s opportunity to disclaim interest and dissolve the union. The PA voted overwhelmingly in favor of of the disclaimer mid-December (meaning: they were in favor of it being an option to pursue). Midnight, tonight is the union’s deadline to go that route, which may be another factor adding some juice to current negotiations. With strides being made in negotiations with the NHL it seems unliley the players will go down this particular road at this time, but we won’t know for sure until tomorrow morning.

Thw two sides are painfully inching closer to one another. Assuming the union stays intact, It will likely take another week of back-and-forth to get a new CBA finalized.

At least it finally feels like this entire, tiresome ordeal is in the home stretch.