LOS ANGELES -- The NHL and NHL Players' Association continue to work toward a new Collective Bargaining Agreement, but they're not yet ready to begin the formal ratification process, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said following the Board of Governors meeting Wednesday.
The current CBA, which was signed in 2013 with a four-year extension ratified in 2020, expires Sept. 15, 2026. The NHL and NHLPA began collective bargaining discussions in April after having informal talks in the weeks leading up to that.
"If in fact at some point we reach an understanding with the Players' Association, have a handshake, then (the new CBA) would be subject to ratification by the Governors and by the players," Commissioner Bettman said. "We'll each have to go through a ratification process. It's conceivable that there would be an announcement when we reach an understanding but that understanding is again subject to ratification once we get to that point, which we're not at at the moment."
Commissioner Bettman said the League's Board of Governors was given a report on CBA negotiations with the NHLPA that he characterized as "quite extensive, both in terms of the process and the substance."
He would not go into details of what was in the report or what could be included in the new CBA.
Commissioner Bettman also reiterated what he has been saying for months about the relationship he has with NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh and the process the players and the League have gone through to get near the finish line on their negotiations for a new CBA.
"The whole process has been trending positive," Commissioner Bettman said. "The relationship is in a great place. Marty and I have a terrific relationship. We don't always agree on everything but it's constructive, professional. And, so, I think things are good."
The Board of Governors received an update from deputy commissioner Bill Daly about prospective owners and markets that have expressed interest in an expansion NHL franchise.
"But there is nothing new," Commissioner Bettman said. "We have no pending applications and we're not seeking to initiate a formal process at this point."
The commissioner said the League has talked generally about what the expansion fee would be with the interested parties, but he did not offer a firm dollar figure.
The Vegas Golden Knights, who began play for the 2017-18 season, paid a $500 million expansion fee to join the NHL. The Seattle Kraken paid a $650 million expansion fee and debuted for the 2021-22 season.
The BOG also heard an extensive report on the League's plans to further its international efforts, Commissioner Bettman said.
Those include participation in best-on-best competitions such as the Olympics and World Cup of Hockey, and growing the business of the game internationally.
The NHL will pause next season in February to allow players to play in the Olympics for the first time since 2014. The League is planning to bring back the World Cup of Hockey in 2028, which will be the first iteration of that event since 2016.
"Obviously, our focus is on Olympics (next year) and then every two years Olympics, World Cup, Olympics, World Cup," Commissioner Bettman said. "And then we have to focus on what we're going to do in the off years with respect to what would be our traditional All-Star break. That's something we're working on but nothing we have to do immediately because we have next season, the Olympics, to look forward to."
In addition, the BOG approved Nashville Predators owner Bill Haslam to acquire approximately another 18 percent of the franchise from existing owners, which would give him approximately a 65-percent ownership stake when the deal closes, making him the majority owner.
There was also a report from the NHL Hockey Operations Department on the state of the game. The Governors were not asked to vote on any potential rule changes.
"The game is good as it is," Commissioner Bettman said.
