NHL, union meet with federal mediators

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(Washington, DC) -- The NHL and the Players' Association met with federal mediators on Wednesday in an attempt to spur negotiations towards a new Collective Bargaining Agreement.

NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr said the discussions are expected to resume on Thursday. The league also confirmed the meetings will continue but declined to issue a statement.

The current lockout has already forced the cancellation of 422 regular season games, the Winter Classic and All-Star Weekend. The league has been locked out since the previous labor deal expired September 15th. The Minnesota Wild were to have played home against the Black Hawks last night.

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The Minnesota Wild are the 17th most valuable franchise in the NHL, according to Forbes' latest annual valuation. The Wild are worth an estimated $218-million-dollars. The Toronto Maple Leafs lead the list after becoming the league's first billion-dollar club.

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The Houston Aeros welcome in the Oklahoma City Barons to the Toyota Center tonight in Houston. The Aeros have won three in-a-row to improve to 9-6-1-2 on the season. The Aeros also host Oklahoma City on Friday night. The Aeros are the AHL affiliate of the Minnesota Wild.

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