Report: Player called out for questioning Fehr in conference call

Throughout the lockout, we’ve heard players speak openly about labor strife, but we almost never hear from the owners.

The reason for that is obvious — the owners risk a fine for talking while the players don’t.

But do the players risk being scrutinized by their peers if they stand up and speak out against the union?

“In the last conference call, a player asked Don why he was learning details of the NHL’s last proposal through the media and not via Don or the players in attendance,” an NHL player told ESPNBoston.com. “Don and some other players called that player out and basically embarrassed him for asking that.”

To be fair, we might be missing information that would add further context to the situation that the player is describing.

It’s also worth noting that a couple of players have suggested that the union should, at least partially, share in the blame for the ongoing lockout.

Tomas Kaberle recently said that “both sides need to smarten up.”

Last month, Dan Boyle complained that “both sides think it’s their way or the highway.”

We’ve also seen an alcohol-inspired Twitter rant from Krys Barch and, whether you agree with what he said or not, it’s not something you would have likely seen if he didn’t feel free to express his views.

Meanwhile, the NHLPA wants to meet next week. Maybe that will finally lead to a deal and make stories like this one moot. Of course, they would need to bridge a sizable gap for that to be possible.