Training Camp Lockout Is Avoided in the NHL

NHL training camps will open as scheduled, the league notified teams Wednesday, although the possibility of a later lockout has not been eliminated.

“We got the news today, but obviously, it could change at any moment after camp opens,” Mighty Duck wing Stu Grimson said. “I think from the players’ standpoint, we’re all very encouraged that things seem to be progressing.”

Sam McMaster, general manager of the Kings, called the league communique “good news.”

“We don’t want to sit, and I’m sure Mr. Bettman doesn’t want to sit and I’m sure the players want a deal,” McMaster said.

The Kings report Saturday and are to take the ice Monday at the Iceoplex in North Hills. The Ducks report Sunday, with their first practice scheduled Monday at The Pond of Anaheim.

Speculation that players would be locked out intensified last week after NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman received authorization from the league’s Board of Governors to shut down camps if he believes insufficient progress is being made in collective bargaining talks. The players have been without a contract since last Sept. 15.

With the Winnipeg Jets scheduled to open camp today, a decision was necessary. After a five-hour meeting Tuesday with Bob Goodenow, executive director of the NHL Players Assn., Bettman decided against a lockout--at least for the present. The possibility of a later one remains, and a league source said Bettman is working with the idea there is a “30-day window” for a lockout between now and the beginning of the season on Oct. 1.

The league made no formal announcement that camps will open, contending that none was necessary since it had never announced the possibility of a lockout.

Another meeting between Bettman and Goodenow is scheduled today, according to Arthur Pincus, NHL vice president for public relations. Salaries are the main issue, with owners seeking to tie salaries to revenue and players intent on having salaries set by the open market.

Although camps are opening, the league is still imposing a series of unilateral rule changes, effective today--except in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Alberta, where labor laws regarding conciliation processes prevent the new provisions from taking effect until later this month.

Players must now pay for their own transportation to and from training camp, and their $54 per diem food allowance has been eliminated for camp and the regular season. Other changes include roster reductions and increased player contributions for medical and pension plans.

Bettman notified the players of the rule changes on Aug. 1, saying it was an effort to make them return to the bargaining table.