Penguins continue gathering at Southpointe for informal workouts

PITTSBURGH — One day after the National Hockey League canceled the exhibition games scheduled for September due to the league's lockout, a group of Pittsburgh Penguins gathered for a workout at the Southpointe Ice-o-Plex facility.

Included in the group of 17 were Sidney Crosby, Kris Letang, James Neal, Matt Cooke, Tyler Kennedy, Chris Kunitz, Craig Adams and Pascal Dupuis.

Channel 11’s Bill Phillips reported the players skated for a little over two hours and included drills and a brief scrimmage.

Despite the league wiping out all games through Sept. 30, a move it deems "necessary because of the absence of a collective bargaining agreement,” the regular season is scheduled to begin on Oct. 11.

Also, a person familiar with the plan said NHL employees at the league offices will switch to a four-day work week Oct. 1 because of the lockout.

The move will effectively cut salaries by 20 percent. The person spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday because the NHL hadn't made the plan public.

The news was first reported by The Canadian Press.

The Florida Panthers and Ottawa Senators have let staff go because of the lockout.

WPXI