The Canadian Press's Chris Johnston sets up a four-day slate of scheduled CBA negotiations in New York City by suggesting that particularly small-group discussions between NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, deputy commissioner Bill Daly, NHLPA executive Donald Fehr and his deputy, Steve Fehr, may or may not restart the negotiating process and/or produce some sort of consensus:

While the parties have met face-to-face every week since the end of June, they've made very little headway on the framework that will shape the next agreement. That prompted the first small session with just Bettman, Daly and the Fehrs in Toronto last week, and led to the scheduling of another one with the talks shifting back to New York.

The sides are in need of anything that might encourage progress with a Sept. 15 deadline looming for a lockout.

"When you get into discussions like this sometimes things can become more or less cumbersome depending on the nature of the group and what you're talking about," said Donald Fehr. "And, you find a way to satisfy everybody's comfort level and go on. If you try it one way and that doesn't really work you go try it another way. If that doesn't work you try it a third way."