List of NHL Players Attending Lockout Meeting Revealed

Today is the day that the NHL players will meet face to face with six NHL owners in hopes of making progress and bridging the gap in order to get a new CBA in place.

Yesterday we heard that both Sidney Crosby of the Penguins and Jonathan Toews of the Blackhawks would be in attendance but the remaining list of players was still to be determined.

Earlier today we learnt that as many as 25 NHL players are in New York today and that there is no limit as to how many can attend the meeting according to TSN.ca.  It was also reported that the speculation would be around ten players would sit in on the meetings that will not include Gary Bettman or Donald Fehr.

Alas, the names have been revealed and they are in no particular order, courtesy of TSN.ca: Craig Adams, David Backes, Michael Cammalleri, B.J. Crombeen, Mathieu Darche, Shane Doan, Ron Hainsey, Shawn Horcoff, Jamal Mayers, Manny Malhotra, Andy McDonald, Ryan Miller, George Parros, Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis, Kevin Westgarth and the aforementioned Crosby and Toews.

The total is 18 players and 6 owners and while it may sound silly, the fate of the current regular season rests in their hands.  There is some hope that today’s meeting will help propel the negotiations forward and move towards a settlement and a new CBA.

The owners include those from the Bruins, Jets, Flames, Maple Leafs, Lightning and Penguins which is somewhat intriguing when you see Jeremy Jacobs from Boston on the list.  The original train of thought was to have some owners who are said to be somewhat in the middle of the lockout, neither leaning too heavy to either side.  Jacobs is said to be one of the more aggressive  of  the owners, often persistent that the league demand a better CBA that cuts into the player’s share of the revenue.  This of course is based on speculation and hearsay and has never been confirmed by any of the main stream media.  Jacobs does however carry a reputation of being cheap which would coincide with his stance on the lockout, given he wants more money from the players.

Regardless of who is involved in the meeting, trying this angle only makes sense and really what can it hurt?  The damage has already been done in the form of over 420 cancelled regular season games including the all-star game the annual Winter Classic.

We’ll keep you updated as to the breaking news from the meeting as the details emerge.

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