from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

So the standoff continues, although the fact the Big Four will meet again Tuesday in Toronto is a slim glimmer of hope. Getting Bettman, Fehr, Bill Daly and Steve Fehr in the same room as often as possible is the only way this thing will ever find a breakthrough.

Monday, meanwhile, would have also been the first NHL payday for the 700-odd players locked out by owners. Yes, escrow payments north of eight percent from their 2011-12 salaries are due before the end of the month and they will help ease that pain, but it won’t take long before Mrs. Player gets tired of her husband not bringing home the bacon.

Similarly, dark arenas will begin to annoy deep-pocketed NHL owners. Sure, they’ve got the financial wherewithal to wait out the players -- that’s a given -- but there are some owners who are also smart enough to see the long-term damage this lockout is already begin to cause.

This league cannot afford two season-long lockouts. It simply cannot. Any owner foolish enough to believe any cost is worth paying to have the ability to crush the players for good and get the CBA that finally, in their minds, makes everything right doesn’t understand the psyche of the people that buy tickets to watch this incredible sport.

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