NHL lockout 2012: Tentative agreement in place on HRR definition

Both the NHLPA and the NHL have continued to engage in talks over the weekend to try and end the current lockout, which has already cost both sides the entire preseason.

Although there seems to be no end in sight, both parties appear to have agreed to maintain the hockey-related revenue definitions from the previous collective bargaining agreement. Language issues still need to be worked out, but the news according to Dan Rosen, senior writer at NHL.com, is slight progress:

Don Fehr said there is an agreement to maintain the definitions of HRR from the previous CBA, but there are some issues with the language.

— Dan Rosen (@drosennhl) September 29, 2012

Under the previous CBA, which expired Sept. 15, the players received a 57 percent share of hockey-related revenue. The NHL hopes to cut that number down in the current talks, and in their initial proposal to the NHLPA over the summer, they had changed the definition of hockey-related revenue to take even more of the pie from the players.

NHLPA head Donald Fehr and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman engaged in private talks on Friday and Saturday to try and move closer to an agreement that would end the work stoppage. On Friday, progress was made on secondary issues, which included player safety and drug testing, but those areas aren't key to the final deal.