The prospect of a cancelled or shortened 2012-2013 NHL season is becoming all the more plausible as players and league officials have refused to agree upon a new collective bargaining agreement.
The last collective bargaining agreement, reached between players and the league after the cancelled 2004-2005 NHL season, expired on Saturday, September 15. Now, the league has officially "locked out" the players as a result over disagreements on how NHL revenues are split between the National Hockey League Player's Association (NHLPA) and the NHL.
Under the previous collective bargaining agreement, players received 57 percent of all hockey-related revenues with the rest going to the league and related entities. Now the league wants to cut their share down to 47 percent. There are more complexities and nuances to this current disagreement (which any hockey fan should definitely read up on), but the main point is; the 2012-2013 is in jeopardy.
Teams like our own Tampa Bay Lightning, who've experienced a fan renaissance (also, a new, multimillion dollar renovation on their home turf) over the past few years could be taking some of the biggest hits in the league.
In addition, businesses like Hattricks, The Luxury Box, and more -many of which depend on Lightning home games for revenue - could take some serious hits if the season never happens.
Tampa Bay Lightning training camp is scheduled to begin on Friday, September 21 with the regular season kicking off on Thursday, October 11. We'll keep you updated as more news arises regarding the 2012 NHL lockout and the Tampa Bay Lightning.
