NHL Lockout: NHL Offers NHLPA 50-50 Hockey Revenue Split, 82-Game Season

The NHL has put forward a new offer to the NHLPA which includes a 50-50 split of hockey-related revenue, according to TSN.ca.

The proposal would see the NHL season start Nov. 2 and include all 82 games. In order to do so, each team would play an additional game every five weeks, and the Stanley Cup would be awarded by the end of June.

The offer is said to be at least six years in length and include no salary rollback. Entry-level contracts would be for two years, and players would become unrestricted free agents after eight years of NHL experience, or at age 28. A five-year limit would be placed on non-entry-level contracts.

NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr called the offer an "excellent start," according to TSN.ca.

Commissioner Gary Bettman stated, "we believe it is our best shot at preserving an 82-game regular season and playoffs," according to Kevin McGran of the Toronto Star.

This is the first formal offer since Sept. 12th, and it comes in the wake of negotiations which took place on Tuesday in Toronto.

The NHLPA has requested time to look over the offer, and Donald Fehr will hold a conference call with his membership at 5 p.m. to do so.

The NHL season was set to begin on Oct. 11, but the now month-old lockout forced the cancellation of the first 82 games on the schedule.

This may be a significant step in the negotiating process, but hockey fans shouldn’t get too excited just yet. Fehr called the offer an "excellent start," and that may be exactly what it is: a start.