(FORT WAYNE) - The future of the Fort Wayne Komets' season is suddenly uncertain as players across the ECHL prepare to go on strike later this week.
The Professional Hockey Players' Association announced that ECHL players intend to strike beginning Friday, Dec. 26, when the league's holiday break ends. The move would affect all teams in the league, including the Fort Wayne Komets.
In a statement released Monday, PHPA Executive Director Brian Ramsay said negotiations with the ECHL have stalled after months of bargaining.
"We are asking for basic standards around health, safety and working conditions that allow the players to remain healthy, compete at a high level and build sustainable professional careers," Ramsay said, adding that players remain unified and ready to resume talks at any time.
The most recent collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players' union expired in June. Despite that, the ECHL began the current season operating under the terms of the expired agreement while negotiations continued.
According to the PHPA, unresolved issues include player compensation, rest and recovery standards, and pay for team-required appearances. The union also said it has filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board.
The ECHL, meanwhile, has outlined what it says is its most recent proposal for a new CBA. That offer includes a 16.4 percent increase to the league salary cap--retroactive to the start of the 2025-26 season--continued coverage of housing, utilities, internet, and medical and dental benefits, mandatory days off, changes to travel requirements for back-to-back games, and modifications to holiday and midseason breaks.
As of Monday night, the league had not issued a public response to the union's strike notice.
If a deal is not reached, games following the holiday break could be canceled, putting the Komets' schedule--and the entire ECHL season--on hold just as teams head into the heart of the winter campaign.