Speaking on the basis of anonymity, a well-placed source directly involved in these negotiations told TFP "a significant number of issues" have been agreed upon between the two parties, but "not all issues are of equal importance."
There are several "fundamental issues," such as the salary cap moving forward, that need to be agreed to before a deal can be reached, the source said.
The NHLPA has accepted a 50/50 split of Hockey Related Revenues and a 10-year Collective Bargaining Agreement, with a few stipulations, such as a mutual opt-out after seven years (the NHL originally proposed an opt-out after eight years).
The NHL has agreed on a higher contract variance percentage, believed to be closer to 20 per cent, up from 10 per cent in their previous proposal (they originally offered five per cent), and two compliance buyouts per team in 2013-14, which will not count against the cap but will count against HHR.
With respect to the variance, no year within a player's contract can be lower than 60 per cent of the highest-paid year of the deal.
The NHL also agreed to restore previous penalties related to "hiding" HRR, something the NHLPA had shown concern over.
The two sides have also agreed to keep such items as the Entry-Level System, Salary Arbitration and Group 3 Unrestricted Free Agency unchanged from the previous CBA.
It has been widely reported that the NHL changed its position on the Players' "Benefit Pension Plan," something an NHLPA executive told TFP had already been agreed to. This now remains an unsettled matter.
The Players seemed willing to accept a six-year limit on contracts for players signing with new teams (seven-year for those re-signing with their respective clubs), but that was before the NHL changed its position on the Players' pension fund.
The NHL continues to stand firm on having the 2013-14 cap at $60 million, while the NHLPA moved off of their original counter offer of $67 million and have since proposed a $65 million cap. This matter (and its connection to escrow) is also unresolved.
Eleven players took part in today's meetings include; Brad Boyes, Chris Campoli, Mathieu Darche, Shane Doan, Andrew Ference, Ron Hainsey, Jamal Mayers, George Parros, Brad Richards, Martin St. Louis and Kevin Westgarth.
Meanwhile, at 6pm ET, the NHLPA membership began to vote to give its Executive Board the authority to file a Disclaimer of Interest.
The NHLPA originally voted in favor of giving its board the ability to file, which had a deadline of 11:59pm ET last night, but the NHLPA opted against filing.
Players now have until Saturday at 6pm ET to vote.
A new CBA must be reached by Jan. 11 otherwise the NHL will cancel the entire season. If a deal is ironed out by then, the regular-season will start on Jan. 19.
