See, kids? You CAN spell Christmas without "N-H-L". In a move that's not surprising given the current status of CBA negotiations, the NHL has written off another two weeks' worth of games.

Renaud Lavoie of RDS is setting tongues wagging this afternoon, with an anonymous "tip" from inside the NHL that seeks to build sympathy for reining in player salaries. But can the league really be losing the amount of money being claimed?

Just like a prisoner in a cell starts talking to himself for lack of human interaction, the hockey media in New York became preoccupied with a podium while CBA talks ran late into the night.

Owners and players met for nearly nine hours on Tuesday. It was characterized as perhaps the "best day" of CBA talks so far.

Tomorrow, the NHL's Board of Governors is scheduled to meet, as the Lockout has now passed the 80-day mark. The time has long passed for urgent action to save the season.

For those who held a glimmer of hope that federal mediators might be able to help resolve NHL Lockout 2012, at least the end came quickly.

While such a move failed to save the 2004-2005 season, the addition of federal mediators to the NHL CBA talks does bring hope that at least a change in direction might come soon.

The NHL Lockout has now claimed the games up through the middle of December, and the 2013 All-Star Weekend which was to take place in Columbus.

I didn't really miss the NHL - until the other day. Here's a list of things I miss.

Things got ugly on Friday, as accusations surfaced that NHLPA Executive Director Don Fehr may have been holding back information from the players. Can the two sides get back to work on salvaging at least some form of a hockey season?