NHL players present latest labor proposal

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NEW YORK, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- The union representing locked-out NHL players Wednesday submitted its latest proposal for a labor deal aimed at saving the 2012-13 NHL season.

The offer was the fourth put on the table by the NHL and the players union since last week as the pace of negotiations picked up with the looming threat of the cancellation of what remains of the season.

The offer was delivered to the NHL office in New York around 2:30 p.m., less than a day after the league made its latest proposal late Tuesday, USA Today reported.

Further talks possible in the evening, NHL Players' Association Executive Director Donald Fehr told reporters.

"We will hear from them when that process is completed," he said. "There is not a lot else to say."

The league has said a new collective bargaining agreement to end the 109-day-old lockout much be reached by Jan. 11 in order to hold a 48-game season that would begin Jan. 19 following a one-week training camp.

The (Toronto) Globe and Mail reported the two sides were close on the key issues of revenue sharing and pensions, but differences remain on the term of the new deal, salary cap provisions, buyout rules and other issues.