This could be the last cancellation of games before the league is forced to give up on the entire season.
Time is running out for the National Hockey League and Commissioner Gary Bettman to save the season.
By SEAN GENTILLE
The NHL is out of rope.
The league on Thursday canceled games through Jan. 14, bringing the total number lost to the NHL lockout to 625 - 50.8 percent of the season.
There isn't an official "drop-dead" date for the 2011-12 season, but realistically, this is the last round of cancellations before the big one; commissioner Gary Bettman has said that a schedule of less than 48 games isn't a real option, and deputy commissioner Bill Daly said that mid-January would be the latest possible agreement point on a new collective bargaining agreement.
It doesn't get more "mid-January" than Jan. 14.
Negotiations derailed two weeks ago in New York, and the sides haven't done more than speak on the phone since.