Little Chance Seen of Salvaging Rest of NHL’s Regular Season

The NHL strike went into its third day Friday, leaving little hope of salvaging the remaining 19 games in the regular season.

With no bargaining sessions planned, and the league’s board of governors scheduled to meet in New York on Monday, it appeared the strike would continue into next week.

Another meeting was scheduled for Friday night in Toronto between NHL President John Ziegler and Bob Goodenow, executive director of the NHL Players Assn. An NHLPA spokesman said the union would present a new proposal for Ziegler to take to the board of governors meeting.

Counting Friday night’s two scheduled games, 11 games had been called off since the start of the players’ strike Wednesday.

There were nine games scheduled tonight and 10 on Sunday, when the regular season is scheduled to end. The Stanley Cup playoffs are scheduled to start Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, an NHLPA spokesman said that Goodenow had received a consensus agreement on the new proposal from the player representatives during a conference call.

“The players are pretty excited about it,” NHLPA spokesman Nigel Miller said. “They think it’s got to fly.”

Ziegler and Goodenow met for much of Thursday at a midtown Toronto hotel.

It still wasn’t clear at what point the playoffs will be in jeopardy. Four teams are still in contention for two playoff spots, and the final standings will also determine home-ice advantage for the playoffs as well as positions in the June entry draft.