NHL owners make new labor proposal to players

• Cap on contract lengths would go from five years to six
• Year-to-year variance would go from 5% to 10%
• Teams would be allowed one compliance buyout

In what appears to be a sincere effort to bridge the gap with players on a new collective bargaining agreement, the NHL has made a new offer to players that softens its demands on individual contract rights.

The owners' proposal contained a cover letter that offered the possibility of starting an abbreviated season on either Jan. 12 or Jan. 19.

The two sides will discuss the proposal via a conference call on Saturday and likely will meet face-to-face in New York on Sunday.

The offer comes a week after players voted to grant authority to the NHL Players' Association executive board to dissolve the union through a "disclaimer of interest." According to the vote, the executive board has until Jan. 2 to decide whether to pursue that move, which undoubtedly would lead to players suing the NHL for antitrust violations.

According to a person with knowledge of negotiations, the owners' latest offer asks for a six-year cap on individual contract lengths and maintains the provision for a seventh year for a team re-signing its own players. Previously, they had asked for a five-year cap. Owners are asking for a 10% year-to-year variance limit on multiyear contracts, a change from their previous request for a 5% variance.

Also, owners have said they are willing to allow one buyout per team before the salary cap drops in the 2013-14 season. The money would not count against the cap but would count against the players' 50% share of revenue. This would allow some opening up of cap space for teams to sign players but could affect how much players would have taken out of their checks in escrow.

The person spoke to USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because details of negotiations are supposed to remain private.

Owners are still offering $300 million in what they call "make whole" money. Those deferred payments are designed to help ease the blow for players with current contracts when the players' share of hockey-related revenue immediately drops from 57% to 50%.

The owners' request for a 10-year CBA, with an eight-year opt-out, remains in place.

The players' last proposal called for an eight-year cap on contract lengths. On contracts of seven or eight years, the lowest salary year could be no less than 25% of the top one. They sought an eight-year CBA with a six-year opt-out.

"We are hopeful that once the union's staff and negotiating committee have had an opportunity to thoroughly review and consider our new proposal, they will share it with the players," deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in a statement. "We want to be back on the ice as soon as possible."

The offer became public on the 104th day of the lockout, making this labor dispute the second-longest in NHL history. The 1994-95 one lasted 103 days and resulted in a 48-game schedule.

Commissioner Gary Bettman has said publicly that he wouldn't want to play less than 48 games, meaning time is running out for owners and players to reach an agreement. The NHL has already canceled all games through Jan. 14.

Players have been locked out since the last deal expired on Sept. 15, and they haven't had a formal meeting since they met with federal mediators for a second time on Dec. 13.