2012 NHL Lockout: NHL, NHLPA Held Lengthy Meeting On Tuesday And Will Continue This Afternoon

The National Hockey League and the NHL players association resumed their bargaining talks on Tuesday afternoon in an undisclosed location in New York City. The meeting which started around 3:30 PM on Tuesday, stretched well into the night, and ended just over seven hours later. This was the second time in four days that both sides returned to the table for a lengthy session, if not their longest yet.

Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly and NHLPA Special Counsel Steve Fehr kick started these negotiations on Saturday afternoon, as they attempted to bridge the gaps that are currently separating both sides. Neither side has made any comments to the media, besides a very straight-forward statement from Bill Daly after last night's meeting concluded.

"Collective bargaining negotiations between the National Hockey League and representatives of the National Hockey League's Players' Association recessed tonight at 10:15 pm.," NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said. "With meetings scheduled to resume Wednesday, the League will not characterize the substance or detail of the discussions until their conclusion."

Sometimes less equals more, and that is the situation we are in right now. Both sides have stepped up, and realized that it's time to focus on the negotiations at hand, and get away from fighting the PR battle. But, it's still way too early to predict where these recent talks will lead us. Staying cautiously optimistic is the best way to put it.

The NHL and NHLPA are expected to continue their meetings this afternoon in another undisclosed location in New York City. Today's meeting will focus on the owners "Make Whole" provision, which will pave the way to honoring all existing contracts. Hopefully all goes well, and we'll have an update later on tonight following today's meeting.