22-12-2004 PokerRoom.com proposes to salvage the 2004-2005 NHL season

"If they can't resolve this dispute through traditional negotiations and compromise, then the PokerRoom.com tournament offers them the best, and quickest, way to declare a winner and let the fans enjoy hockey again before it's too late," Patrik Selin, PokerRoom's casino boss, said.

At the heart of the dispute lies the intention of NHL to implement a salary cap for each team, whereas the Players' Association opposes any such system.

The absence of set negotiations between the two parties point out to the possibility of ice hockey being the first professional sport to lose an entire season in the U.S.