SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (CP) - When NHL owners gather Wednesday for the first time since the lockout ended in July, they will be reviewing a league landscape scarcely imaginable after losing an entire season to a labour dispute.

On and off the ice, the NHL is doing just fine. Attendance is up in most cities (but certainly not all), the game is more exciting and revenues are expected to surpass pre-season projections.

"I think people are feeling good about where we are, but there's a lot of work to be done and this is no time for anyone to pat themselves on the back," NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said this week in an interview with The Canadian Press.

The NHL's board of governors meets Wednesday and Thursday in Arizona.

It's believed owners will be told the projected salary cap for next season is not expected to be lower than the current $39 million US, and in fact could possibly be a little higher.

"I don't want to confirm or deny anything before I tell it to the owners, but revenues are strong," Bettman said. "And that may surprise some people."

The $39-million figure was based on projected revenues of $1.8 billion this season, down from the $2.1 billion the league reported in 2003-04 before the lockout. With a new U.S. TV deal in hand from OLN, a new broadcast deal in Europe and attendance strong in traditional hockey markets, the league is on pace to at least match the $1.8-billion projection, if not surpass it.

"We knew that if we could get the right economic system, if we could get the right competitive balance, and we could blend that with the rule changes that we have done on a partnership basis, that this is the result we could have," said Bettman. "Because we had complete faith in our game, we had faith in our game and we had faith in our players."

While the NHL says it posted record attendance figures for October and November, rinks in Florida, Atlanta, Carolina, Anaheim and New Jersey appear to have as many empty seats as full ones.

"Our attendance generally gets stronger as the season progresses," said Bettman. "As baseball ended, and as football ends, and we get past the holidays, our attendance tends to spike upwards. That's been the historical trend. And to the extent that there have been empty seats in some places, by and large there are fewer empty seats than there were."

Also on the table at the board of governors meeting:

-A report on franchise matters, including Pittsburgh and St. Louis.

-More CBA matters, including a look at how revenue-sharing might shape up this season.

-A look at the league's new drug-testing program.

-A presentation from OLN executives on the network's new relationship with the league.

-A report on the new rules, their impact, and a possible vote on expanding video review for the penalty shootout to avoid future goals like Jeremy Roenick's "double-hit" - where he basically got two shots away.

-A report on preparations for the Turin Olympics;

-A discussion on possibly adding a "play-in" round to the playoffs, therefore expanding the playoff field to 20 teams from the current 16.

Bettman also invited NHLPA executive director Ted Saskin to address the owners, not something Saskin's predecessor Bob Goodenow would have ever dreamed of doing given his adversarial relationship with the league.

But these are different times. The new CBA more closely links the players and the owners economically. The more revenue owners rake in, the higher the salary cap, the more money players make.

"In this era of partnership, I thought it was important for the owners to hear from the players, and the Players' Association, exactly what they're thinking and how they're viewing our collective world," Bettman said of inviting his union counterpart.

Saskin was in Chicago on Tuesday to meet with 60 to 65 player agents. Billed as an information session, it was also a chance for agents to ask Saskin about his conflict with Trent Klatt and the dissident group of players who remain angry with what they believe was Saskin's improper hiring. Saskin was re-elected via secret ballot late last month but Klatt's group has continued its fight, setting up a meeting Tuesday morning at the same Chicago hotel with any of the agents interested in hearing their case.

Back in Scottsdale, the state of the Pittsburgh Penguins will also be front and centre. With funding for a new arena still not lined up, the Penguins may be headed out of town.

"I'm not worried about it because Pittsburgh has been a very strong market for us, the franchise being extremely well run," said Bettman. "The issue is whether or not the Penguins will be treated as fairly as the city, the county and the state treated the Steelers and the Pirates.

"It's not only that the Penguins have the oldest building in the National Hockey League, it's that there are two publicly supported stadiums that were built primarily with taxpayer money and they're new and modern and have the amenities. So it's difficult for the Penguins to compete for the sport dollar in Pittsburgh against the sale of the modern suite and the advertisement and the amenities fans have become accustomed to.

"Hopefully they're going to get a new arena because everybody, including Mario, wants the Penguins to stay right where they are."

The Penguins' lease at Mellon Arena expires after this season and they can officially look at other cities as early as June. Kansas City is believed to top the list.

"There are lots of places that have been expressing interest in NHL hockey but we're not focused on any of them because we're not looking to relocate and we're not looking to expand," said Bettman. "We're looking to make sure that our 30 franchises are healthy and vibrant where they're located."