A lockout involving all 30 NHL teams became less of a certainty Monday even though the league and the players haven't reopened collective bargaining talks.
A scheduled morning hearing today with the Alberta Labour Relations Board - where the NHL Players' Association was to argue that locking out members of the Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames would be unlawful - ended up being cancelled Monday night.
Deputy commissioner Bill Daly had been expected to travel to Edmonton for the hearing and told The Canadian Press: "This is a joke." However, after the NHL withdrew its claim with the labour board, Daly said he felt the league still had the legal authority to impose a lockout in Alberta.
The union disagreed, with general counsel Don Zavelo saying in a statement that he felt it would not be permitted. Donald Fehr, the NHLPA's executive director, took issue with Daly's characterization of the process.
"At this stage of the bargaining I wouldn't be treating anything as a joke," said Fehr. "The proceeding in Alberta is a proceeding that they instituted and then abandoned."
Under Alberta law, a mediator must be appointed before an employer imposes a lockout. The NHLPA objected to the NHL's right to do so on the grounds it failed to take proper steps during the process and showed no willingness to work with the mediator.
According to Fehr, the NHL then withdrew its request.
All of this has been playing out while the league and players continue to have no bargaining sessions scheduled before the current CBA expires at 8: 59 p.m. PT on Saturday. The league has said it will enact a lockout if that deadline passes without an agreement.
The union also plans to file an application to the Quebec Labour Board this week in an effort to keep Montreal Canadiens players from being locked out. In Quebec, the NHLPA isn't recognized as a certified union, which it believes makes a lockout unlawful.
Even though the disputes in Alberta and Quebec would affect just three of 30 NHL teams, Habs defenceman Josh Gorges expressed hope that it would catch the attention of every owner.
"It's unfortunate that it's not the same laws in every city, but I think it gives us an opportunity to put pressure on the owners to try to get a deal done so that other teams can join us and we can start playing on time."
