A small group of National Hockey League (NHL) owners and players appeared to be making some progress on Wednesday toward ending a costly lockout that threatens to wipe out a full season of play for the second time in seven years. Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was among 18 players who met with six NHL owners at a Manhattan hotel for a second consecutive day of marathon negotiations that continued for almost nine hours before ending well past midnight. Further talks are planned for Thursday as the two sides attempt to find a common ground in pursuit of a new collective bargaining agreement. "We obviously had a number of meetings today over many hours," NHL Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly told reporters. "Had good, candid dialogue on a lot of issues. "There continue to be some critical open issues between the two parties and we understand the (players') union should be getting back to us (Thursday) on some of those issues." Yahoo.com
