BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Buffalo businessman Mark Hamister said Thursday that an agreement with the NHL is near, clearing the way for him to purchase the bankrupt Sabres.

It is still unknown whether the state, county and city are willing to commit public funding to the team, a point that has held up the potential sale for weeks.

Hamister said he expects to sign the agreement as early as Friday, but it would be contingent on the funding issue.

Hamister and his majority partner, Todd Berman, are seeking roughly $40 million in public aid and obligations. The request includes state refinancing of a $23 million loan on the arena and a $7 million county-funded parking deck.

"The parties have agreed to put a contingency in the asset purchase agreement that provides that the contract is contingent upon reaching an acceptable agreement with the state, county and city and that will then give us more time to get that issue resolved,'' Hamister said.

Hamister characterized the talks as constructive but declined to say whether substantial progress has been made on key issues in recent days.

"That's hard to say because it's not unlike a hockey game,'' Hamister said. "The score at the beginning of the third period doesn't count. The score at the end of the third period does.

"Until we finish it, I think it would be misleading to suggest that progress has sent us in one direction or another.''

Calls to Gov. George Pataki's office were not returned Thursday. Erie County executive Joel Giambra could not be reached for comment.

City lawmakers last week rejected Hamister's request to waive ground rent at HSBC Arena, where the Sabres play, but promised to consider other means of assistance.

The NHL gave Hamister, who intends to keep the team in Buffalo, exclusive rights to the Sabres until Friday. League spokesman Frank Brown would not say Thursday whether the league had received other inquires about the Sabres.

"This is a period of exclusivity,'' Brown said. "We can't even consider any.''

The Sabres filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Monday. While all agreed the step was necessary for the sale to go forward, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman acknowledged that it could also open the door to other bidders interested in moving the Sabres out of town.

Bettman, Hamister and others said the Sabres' bankruptcy filing was necessary to protect the potential owners from future claims involving Adelphia Communications Corp., the Sabres' largest creditor.

Adelphia, now under bankruptcy protection itself, is owed about $130 million that former Adelphia chairman, John Rigas, used to buy and operate the Sabres. Rigas ran the team until June when his financial downfall forced the team under the league's control.