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A tentative agreement has been reached between the NHL and NHL Players' Association.

The NHL and NHLPA appear to be inching closer to a deal.

The NHL and NHLPA went a second straight day without a formal in-person negotiating session, although the two sides remain engaged in mediation.

The NHLPA began another vote to reauthorize the executive board the right to disclaim interest, a source confirmed to ESPNNewYork.com, as the union and league spent Thursday without any formal labor negotiations.

The self-imposed midnight deadline for the NHLPA to file a disclaimer of interest, which would dissolve the union, came and passed Wednesday evening as negotiations continued into Thursday morning.

The NHL and the union's main negotiating teams met for 30 minutes before ending talks for the evening.

The NHL and NHLPA resumes informational discussions Sunday, although there was no formal bargaining sessions scheduled yet, a source said.

The NHL has canceled all games through Dec. 30.

The latest round of NHL labor talks broke down Thursday when the league rejected the players' proposal of an eight-year collective bargaining agreement.

Multiple sources told ESPNNewYork.com that there appears to be cautious optimism from both the league and the union as a result of Tuesday's marathon session between the two sides.

The National Hockey League announced yet another round of cancellations on Friday, wiping out all regular-season games through Dec. 14, as well as the All-Star Game in Columbus, originally slated for Jan. 27.

The NHL and NHLPA resumed discussions Monday night, following which the league requested a formal proposal from the union.

Multiple sources told ESPN that NHL commissioner Gary Bettman suggested to NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr on Wednesday that the two sides take a two-week moratorium from negotiations.

The NHL and NHL Players' Association met briefly Sunday in a failed attempt to tackle player contracting issues, leaving little hope a labor deal will be reached soon.

Any mounting optimism from four straight days of labor talks between the NHL and NHLPA seemed to abate as negotiations went sour between the two sides Friday.

The NHLPA made two offers during Wednesday's negotiating session, a source told ESPNNewYork.com, and is awaiting the league's response during Thursday's talks.