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The pact to respect player contracts across all borders followed offers made last month by teams in Russia's Continental Hockey League - which begins play in September - to entice Evgeni Malkin out of the final year of his deal with the Pittsburgh Penguins.
It was reached at a meeting of the NHL, the NHL Players' Association and international hockey leagues in Zurich, Switzerland, the home of the International Ice Hockey Federation.
"Everyone in the room agreed that for the foreseeable future everyone will respect everybody's contracts," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said.
Players' union director Paul Kelly said all parties recognized the need for "clear respect between leagues."
The deal was brokered with Russian league founder Alexander Medvedev, who had given his teams a green light to approach players like Malkin.
Medvedev was nominated to the working group that will meet in New York in September in hopes of creating an international transfer agreement to replace the one that lapsed last month after six European leagues backed out.
Russia had withdrawn 3 years ago.
The group will also look at plans to globalize the game, including holding a World Cup in 2012.
The European nations - Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, Sweden, Slovakia and Switzerland - also want an increase in the $200,000 compensation fee they get when an out-of-contract player leaves for an NHL franchise.
The Continental league, known as the KHL in Russia, will have 24 teams - including one each in neighboring Belarus and Kazakhstan - that can have five overseas players on a 25-man roster.
Daly said the NHL and KHL established a mutual understanding since meeting at the IIHF world championships in Canada in May.
"We don't view them as a threat," he said. "We still believe the best hockey players in the world will continue to want to play in the NHL."
* Vancouver signed forward Pavol Demitra to an $8 million, 2-year contract to bolster their offense. Demitra, 33, had 54 points (15-39) in 68 games with Minnesota last season.
* Vancouver signed forward Pavol Demitra to an $8 million, 2-year contract to bolster their offense. Demitra, 33, had 54 points (15-39) in 68 games with Minnesota last season.* Former Flyer Doug Sulliman was hired as an assistant coach by Phoenix.
Sulliman played in the NHL from 1979-90 and then was an assistant coach with the New Jersey Devils from 1990-93. He then spent 11 years working on Wall Street and 5 years in the insurance industry. He also spent time as a television analyst.
Sulliman, 48, replaces former Flyer Rick Tocchet, who was hired this week as an assistant coach by the Tampa Bay Lightning. *
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