Lockout knocks out openers

NEW YORK -- The Tampa Bay Lightning were supposed to raise their Stanley Cup championship banner this week to kick off the new season.

Instead, the arena that rocked during the finals in June will be dark because of a labor dispute that shows no sign of ending soon. That will be the case, too, for Ottawa, Chicago, Colorado, Phoenix, Anaheim and San Jose, also slated to host openers tonight.

The NHL has been shut down for nearly a month following the expiration of the collective bargaining agreement. The league and the players association are so far apart philosophically that they haven't met or even spoken since Sept. 9.

"I don't think anybody is happy that we're in the situation we're in," said Bill Daly, the NHL's chief legal officer. "I think everybody would much rather be playing hockey."

Training camps didn't open and the entire preseason schedule was wiped out. Now, real games are about to be officially lost.

"The players are disappointed but not surprised the 2004-05 season will not start on time," NHLPA senior director Ted Saskin said Tuesday.