Most individuals, be they media members, blogger-types, or simply pessimists, seem to have come to the conclusion that the NHL's latest offer to the NHLPA is going to be rejected. The prevailing attitude seems to be that the latest proposal is simply slightly less terrible than the first, rather ridiculous one, tabled in the summer.

I don't even like the idea that anyone is even discussing the owners' attempt to strike back in the PR battle, since, by most educated accounts, they a) aren't fixing the core issues that could help teams in poor financial straights, b) are still in the ridiculous position of having record profits and insisting on paying their most important employees and products less.

The owners are still a pile of hot garbage.

On to the links.

Michael Russo expects a counter proposal from the NHLPA today
Just a link to his Twitter feed.

Teams that blatantly circumvented the cap could get creamed
Oh please, oh please, oh please. From Justin Bourne at BHS.

Donald Fehr advises that, prior to wrecking themselves, fans may want to check themselves
From JB at BHS.

NHL shifts negotiating gears mid-race, tries to seize the high ground in PR war
Yeah, screw the owners. Their latest offer was still pretty darn poor.

Why the players won’t go for NHL’s latest proposal
James Mirtle argues escrow will be the major sticking point.

Defining victory in the NHL lockout
Ken Dryden wrote this piece for the Globe and Mail. This man is always a good read.

Breaking apart individual point percentage
I'm not wild about this metric, but it makes for interesting discussion. From David Johnson.

KHL Update: Grabo Goal, More of Malkin, Unlucky Chara, and more
I'll admit it, these KHL highlights are fun to watch. From Steve Dangle at TLN.

The Trouble with Tyler Biggs
Cam thinks it's difficult to assess what kind of player we have on our hands, here. I'll concede that it's tough for me to say much without having seen the kid play, but my hopes are still pretty darn low.

If NHL players had to take 10% less across the board tomorrow? Horrors…
Michael Langlois is one person who is inclined to side with the owners in all this.