In a procedural formality, the NHL has provided the required 120-day notice to the players' union in order to make changes to the CBA, an NHLPA spokesman confirmed to ESPN.com. The current CBA expires Sept. 15. If either party wanted to extend the agreement, the current one would automatically have been extended for another season. At the general managers' meetings in mid-March, commissioner Gary Bettman said he was "not particularly concerned" about the negotiating timeline.