from Nicholas J. Cotsonika of NHL.com,

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman speaks to NHLPA executive director Don Fehr regularly. The League and the Players' Association have formed a Return to Play Committee that includes executives and players.

"Having the committee that's been put together with the players is important so that we can get the feedback on the issues that are important to them and how to resolve them, and that we can be communicating how we're focusing on the things we think that need to be done," Commissioner Bettman told NHL Network on Thursday. "It's been extraordinarily collaborative, constructive and cooperative, and I couldn't be more pleased with the interaction that we're having."

Following a virtual committee meeting Wednesday, the NHL and the NHLPA released a joint statement saying they had not made any decisions or set a timeline regarding possible return-to-play scenarios.

"I don't think anybody knows for certain," the Commissioner said Thursday when asked how close the NHL was to resuming the season. "We're going to have to take things one step at a time, because the health and well-being of our players is paramount to anything we're focused on."

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