Tuukka Rask doesnt take himself too seriously, and joked what am I going to say there? Theyre not gonna listen to me when asked if he planned on attending any of the CBA sessions between the NHL and NHLPA this summer.
In fact hed been away in Finland until several days ago and wasnt as up-to-date as many North American players on the current state of talks. But Rask was still hopeful talks will bear fruit and the most important season of his NHL career will begin in October as scheduled.
I would hope we start on time because I havent played a game in a long time, said Rask, who hasnt played in a game since exiting a March 3 loss to the New York Islanders with a strained groinabdomen that knocked him out until the playoffs. I havent been to any meetings, so I cant really say any more than you could. Ive been in Finland and the news there isnt quite as on time as its been here.
Now that Rask is back in North America hell be checking in with Bruins teammates that have been active in the CBA discussions, Daniel Paille, Andrew Ference and Patrice Bergeron, and getting ready for the scheduled September start to training camp.
Officials from both the NHL and the NHLPA have been meeting for more than a month with only one very unreasonable first proposal from the leagues side to kick things off. Progress has stalled while the players union attempts to gather information for an appropriate counter-proposal and players like Rask begin to filter into their home NHL cities while preparing for training camp. The current CBA expires on Sept. 15 and the expectation is that the NHL owners will lock out the players if both sides havent come to an agreement by the middle of next month.