What a Day for NHL Lockout Negotiations

It’s been a pure roller coaster of a day for NHL fans who are anxious to see an end to the continuing NHL lockout. After the Board of Governors met earlier this morning, a previously-scheduled press conference with commissioner Gary Bettman slated for 1 p.m. turned into nearly an hour’s wait for Bettman to deliver naught but a one-minute statement about respecting the process and refusing to take questions. About 15 minutes later, the NHL and NHLPA started to meet again like they did yesterday, further raising hopes for more breakthroughs in the process or even a better announcement than the one that came at basically 2 p.m.

Already rumors are spreading that coaches are calling players and telling them to get ready to report, an announcement could come on Friday, the season could begin around Christmas and so on. Obviously, at a time like this, people are monitoring NHL news sources closer than possibly ever before in these negotiations.

So, keeping that in mind, what does the NHL.com team decide to do with their content carousel? Use one of the most misleading phrases possible in this scenario, of course!

“WELCOME BACK,” exclaims the big headline, followed by–ah, pictures of retired NHL players who once came back to the game. Yes, there’s definitely no way that hopeful fans could see “WELCOME BACK,” not really notice who is pictured and think that the best news had happened. Definitely not!

On Twitter, #NHLdotcomheadlines is trending as fans imagine what the NHL.com team might have up their sleeves next. Here are some really funny ones I’ve seen:

THANK YOU FANS! How the NHL’s top players stay cool during the summer. #NHLdotcomheadlines

— birky (@b1rky) December 5, 2012

NEW DEAL FINALLY REACHED: Gary Bettman agrees to Pizza Hut’s Big Dinner Box, saving him $4.75. #NHLdotcomHeadlines

— Santa Claus (@IAmTheRealSanta) December 5, 2012