Union chief Donald Fehr is sticking to his story that a deal with the NHL to end the four-month lockout was close before talks suddenly broke off this week.
Donald Fehr thought he and the hockey players he leads were close to a deal to save the season. The NHL said not so fast, and then took away everything that created all the optimism in the first place.
NHL owners and players have met in big groups. They've held smaller sessions. They're tried federal mediators. Nothing has worked, so they're going to try something different.
The NHL, the players' association and now even federal mediators agree on one thing: The bickering sides are nowhere near a deal that would put hockey back on the ice.
The National Hockey League season was supposed to be in full swing by now. Instead, the NHL is mired in a labor dispute, with the owners locking out the players and -- so far -- wiping out more than two months of the season. In question-and-answer form, here's a look at where things stand.
Negotiations had already hit a wall in the ongoing hockey labor fight, and now the NHL has suggested the sides take an official two-week break before getting back to the bargaining table.
As quickly as NHL labor negotiations got going again, they came to a screeching halt. Now there is no telling when the league and the players will return to the bargaining table.