The Canadian franchises and Canada as a market for NHL hockey has always been a priority for us.

It takes two sides to make a deal, two sides to negotiate and two sides to make it go bad.

My message to the kids and our fans is hockey's a great game. There's a lot of hockey being played at all levels. Get involved, do it. We will be back and we will be back better than ever and hopefully as soon as possible. Don't give up on the game. It's too good.

We profoundly regret the suffering this has caused our fans, our business partners and the thousands of people who depend on our industry for their livelihoods.

This is a sad, regrettable day that all of us wish could have been avoided.

The Canadian franchises and Canada as a market for NHL hockey has always been a priority for us.

My feeling is that contracts should always be honored. ... This is a situation where a legally binding contract is not being honored and that's not right.