BOSTON (AP) – Boston Bruins coach Mike Sullivan said Monday he’s not giving up on the possibility that there will be a shortened NHL season, although time is running out.

“Obviously, the timetable is getting shorter and the window of opportunity is getting smaller, but I’m an optimist,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan and dozens of Bruins fans and retired players were gathered Monday night at a bar near the FleetCenter to watch Ray Bourque’s induction into the NHL Hall of Fame in Toronto.

National Hockey League owners locked out the players before the start of the 2004-05 season. The owners, who said their teams combined to lose $224 million last season, are demanding a salary cap, which the players union adamantly opposes.

The NHL and the players association haven’t held a negotiating session since Sept. 9, one week before the lockout was imposed. But NHLPA senior director Ted Saskin met with Bill Daly, the NHL’s chief legal officer, on Oct. 26 in New York. Lockout issues weren’t discussed and no talks are scheduled.

“I’m sure people are disillusioned,” Sullivan said. “It’s a difficult time for everyone associated with hockey, for those who make a living at it and the fans who love it.

Longtime Bruins season ticket holder Paula Mattaliano said she’s at a loss.

“We’re devastated without hockey. It’s like my kids have been kidnapped,” said Mattaliano, 46, an attorney from Arlington who wore her home white No. 77 jersey in honor of Bourque. “I am so bummed out without hockey. We’ve been reduced to watching classic Bruins games, knowing when Ray is going to score. There’s nothing to do.”

Since the lockout began, about 250 NHL players have headed to teams in Europe, about one-third of the league, according to the International Ice Hockey Federation. Bruins captain Joe Thornton is among them, playing for Hockey Club Davos in the Swiss Elite League.

“This is just a reality check, not unlike other businesses,” Sullivan said. “It’s big business.”

AP-ES-11-08-04 2038EST