NHL, retired players reach $19M concussions settlement

Penguins' Sidney Crosby's shot is stopped in a shootout against the Islanders' Thomas Greiss on Nov. 1 at Barclays Center in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Bruce Bennett / Getty Images)

The National Hockey League announced a tentative $18.9 million settlement Monday with more than 300 retired players who sued the league and accused it of failing to protect them from head injuries or warning them of the risks involved with playing.

The lawsuit, consolidated in federal court in Minnesota, was by far the largest facing the league. The NHL, as it has for years, did not acknowledge any liability for the players' claims in the proposed settlement and can terminate the deal if all 318…