NHL teams go on lockout offensive on their websites

NEW YORK — Day 1 of the NHL’s lockout of players began with a public relations offensive on the NHL website and the Internet sites of individual teams, but no talks were scheduled between representatives of the league and the players’ union.

NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said early Sunday afternoon that he expected to speak with NHL Players’ Assn. counsel Steve Fehr later in the day but that things would likely get quiet in the subsequent 24 to 48 hours because of the upcoming Jewish holidays. Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, will be celebrated beginning Sunday at sundown.

The NHL posted a message that dominates its site. But while it praises the just-expired collective bargaining agreement for having promoted competitive balance, the NHL refused to keep operating under that labor deal while continuing negotiations.

Teams have also begun to post messages to fans on their websites. Here are some examples: the Dallas Stars, the Florida Panthers, the Edmonton Oilers and the Vancouver Canucks.

Players have begun signing with overseas teams. Octagon Hockey agent Allan Walsh used his Twitter account to announce that client Ruslan Fedotenko had signed with Donetsk of Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League, Detroit’s Pavel Datsyuk signed with Ak Bars Kazan of the KHL.

And KHL team Metallurg announced Sunday that it had signed Pittsburgh’s Evgeni Malkin and Ottawa’s Sergei Gonchar for the duration of the lockout.

Also, teams began announcing refund plans for season-ticket holders. The Ducks said fans who keep their money with the club will receive 5% interest on the money and credit for all games missed, which is the same as the Kings’ policy. Those who want an immediate refund will get that refund plus 1% interest.

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