Gov. Ed Rendell said today that public officials have offered the Penguins the best deal any National Hockey League team has received to build an arena in recent years.

		Listen in Listen to comments from Gov. Ed Rendell on talks with the Penguins about a new arena: Some progress, some setbacks 'A slow process' 'There has to be team participation' Previous coverage Penguins meeting ends with no deal

The governor, who participated in a meeting between public officials and team executives late last night, elaborated on the discussions to keep the team in Pittsburgh as he emerged from the Sheraton Hotel in Station Square this morning.

He said that, under terms discussed last night, the Penguins would be expected to contribute a fraction of what the Pirates, Steelers and three Philadelphia teams -- the Eagles, Flyers and Phillies -- put into their new facilities in recent years.

He said the Pirates contributed 18 percent of the construction costs for PNC Park. The Penguins' expected contribution would be significantly below that, he said, but he wouldn't give a dollar figure.

"I believe the offer we put before the Penguins is the best of any offer that's been made to any NHL team for a new stadium in recent times and it's also by far the best of any offer made to any Pennsylvania professional sports team for a new stadium."

Officials on both sides of last night's meeting generally were closed-mouthed after the session, a contrast to the optimism expressed after the first round of meetings.

Mr. Rendell said, "We made progress on some things and went back on others and that's very common in negotiations." Asked what they "went back on," he said, "some of the requests for relief from the Penguins."

"I hoped we would have made more" progress, the governor said. "I'm still hopeful, but there's a lot of posturing that goes on. That's true in these types of negotiations, that's true in business negotiations, it's true in labor negotiations."

More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.