It's interesting to say that the Northwest Passage is becoming more open, because in the last couple of seasons there's actually more ice there and more dangerous ice than ever—in the past 10 years, anyway. So yes, the ice is melting a little bit, but it also means that the multi-year ice, a very hard ice, is moving down, too, and it ends up in the Northwest Passage in the fall and freezes there. By springtime, it doesn't melt as quickly as first-year ice. It is not as open as one might think.
On November 27th, 2014. See this statement in context.