A 56-Game N.H.L. Schedule Is a Possibility With the nearly three-month N.H.L. lockout lurching uncertainly toward a conclusion, fans can start to consider how much of the season can be saved. With the schedule through Dec. 14 canceled, and more games likely to be canceled later this week, the best hope may be for a 56-game schedule. While salvaging about two-thirds of the regular season may be good for the players and fans, the loss of so many games has come at a steep cost to some owners. That's because many teams have been forced to repay their season-ticket holders and sponsors at a time when revenue is not coming in. In some cases, teams have extended contracts with sponsors at no extra cost, or repaid them with things like concert tickets, free parking and food and beverages. Even then, not all teams are created equal. Only nine of the league's 30 teams share an arena with an N.B.A. team that serves as an anchor tenant. The Kings, for instance, share the Staples Center with the Lakers and Clippers, which means AEG, their owner, is "more likely to retain revenue certainty to support operations," Fitch Ratings said in a report issued Thursday. Many other clubs, including in Newark, Columbus, Ohio, and San Jose, do not have N.B.A. teams as co-tenants. The owners of the Rangers and the Knicks, meanwhile, are in the middle of an overhaul of Madison Square Garden and need the hockey season to begin to help pay for that renovation. Chad Lewis, the author of the report, said that while most arenas will be able to maintain revenue from sales of suites and club seats, sponsorship and advertising in the short term, "the pressure on renewal rates stemming from local economic conditions and, in some cases, recent on-ice performance could be exacerbated by labor uncertainty." In other words, angry fans and sponsors may walk away once their current contracts expire, or they could ask for significant discounts if they decide to renew. The league could also suffer further damage if an agreement with the players is not reached soon. For example, a 56-game schedule would be 68 percent of an 82-game schedule, meaning sponsors need pay the N.H.L. 68 percent of what they otherwise would have paid; a 50-game schedule would entitle sponsors to pay 61 percent. The league and its owners realize that the window for even a truncated season is narrowing, one more reason to believe a deal with the players may be struck sooner rather than later.