NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has reportedly scheduled an afternoon news conference to announce the 2004-2005 season has been wiped out.
The union relented on the idea of a salary cap but Bettman said the proposed $52million limit per team was too high.
He presented the union with a counter-proposal that raised the league's proposed cap from $40million to $42.5million. Union executive director Bob Goodenow offered a counter-proposal to Bettman's "final" offer, rejecting the $42.5million figure and seeking a $49million annual cap for each of the league's 30 clubs.
But Bettman said that the union's figure was too high and would in fact allow for greater spending by already cash-strapped clubs.
And he warned that players’ terms will only get worse once the season is wiped out and the 2005-06 campaign is jeopardized.
