With Any Luck

i suppose the one good thing to come of all this, hopefully sometime this week the CBC news will shut the **** up about the lockout and where the negotiations were going (which until now was nowhere, so why keep rattling on about it)

sounds like you are going through a rather painful hockey withdrawal?

in some ways, it was certainly worrying to me that they may come back

now i have to endure the idiots messing up my CBC viewing (especially during the playoffs, at least in the regular season they pretty much stick to Saturday nughts) with their mindless crap

i can't believe the cheap-skate owners caved...

will teams be ready to play on the 15th?

Hahaha! Region ... Cheap skate?

Man, I just couldn't believe that a collection of business men in this tough economy could shoot themselves in the foot...err...skate ... like that.

Then, added to this insult, comparatively, hockey is a weak 4th amongst the major North American pro sports. They had to put themselves back at least a decade.

The highlights:

- Will be 48- or 50-game season, competition within conference only. Camps could open as early as Wednesday, season could begin as early as Jan. 15.

-10 year agreement, opt out provisions at eight years.

- 50-50 revenue split, although union gets $300 million of "make whole" payments to soften landing into new system.

- Salary cap this year at $70 million, next year drops to $64.3 million with floor at $44 million. Players could face sharply increased escrow payments, which they hate.

- Contracts (no limit previously) now limited to seven years, except players can re-sign with their own team for eight years.

- $200 million in revenue sharing.

- Arbitration walkaways now limited to awards over $3.5 million.

- New draft lottery system in which all 14 teams will have a shot at first overall pick. Under old system, could only move up a maximum four slots.

- Within a contract, salaries can vary by no more than 35 per cent from year-to-year, and by no more than 50 per cent from the highest salary to the lowest.

- It is expected NHLers will compete in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia, although there's still work to be done on that issue.

- New system on supplementary discipline, players who get more than six games can appeal to a neutral third party.

- Teams will be able to use two "amnesty" buyouts next summer that won't count against salary cap.

- Players achieve gains in pensions, moving from defined contribution plan to defined benefit plan.

"The pension is the centre-piece for the players," said Hainsey, one of the key players involved in the talks.

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Could someone explain this to me?

Players could face sharply increased escrow payments, which they hate.