NHL Cancels All-Star Game, Games Through December 14

First the 2013 Winter Classic got the axe and now the 2013 All-Star Game will follow suit as the 2012-13 NHL Lockout has now reached it’s 69th day and counting.

On Friday the National Hockey League announced that all games through December 14 as well as the 60th league All-Star Game were cancelled. The All-Star game was set to be held on January 27, in Columbus, OH at the Nationwide Arena which is home to the Columbus Blue Jackets.

These latest cancellations will now increase the number of games lost this season due to the lockout up to 422 which is roughly 34.3% of the entire contests which were scheduled for the season. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman stated on Wednesday that the NHL is losing approximately $18-$20 million per day for everyday that the lockout has gone on which means based on Bettman’s figures the league has lost an estimated $1.24-$1.38 billion already and will only continue to grow as the two sides remain distant in their proposals.

On Wednesday NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr told members of the media that the player’s union and league were about $182 million apart for a new five-year collective bargaining agreement and that there was also much more work which need to be done in order to get the sides on the same page.

The player’s last offer included a $393 million figure which they wanted to split amongst one another for salaries while the league’s proposal sat around the $211 million mark.

Bettman had the following to say about the current situation and where it stands, “To expect our best economic proposal to get better as the damage continues to increase isn’t particularly realistic.”

Buffalo Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller told several media outlets, “After watching the other sport leagues go through labor disputes last year, it is apparent that until decertification is filed, there will not be any real movement or negotiation. They want to see if we will take a bad deal because we get desperate or if we have the strength to push back. Decertification is a push back and should show we want a negotiation and a fair deal on at least some of our terms.”