Rejoice all fans of American ice hockey - it's now been a settlement in the dispute between some European hockey nations which casted doubt on the participation of NHL in the upcoming Torino Olympics. The Russians are dissatisfied with a player transfer deal between the NHL and International Ice Hockey Federation that would increase the amount of compensation paid to European clubs and federations who lose players to the NHL. After a meeting in Zurich last week a relieved IIHF president Rene Fasel said in a statement:

"The meeting was very productive and there are no major obstacles between the IIHF and the NHL and the NHLPA with regards to NHL players' participation in the Olympics," I think we can all agree on that the tournament wouldn't have been the same without NHL. During the 2006 Torino Olympic games, the Men will play in two groups, Group A: Canada, Italy, Switzerland, Finland, Germany, and the Czech Republic. Group B will include: the USA, Sweden, Kazakhstan, Russia, Slovakia, and Latvia.