The NHL has determined that its players will not be playing in the 2018 Winter Olympics.
This time around, it's going to take a miracle off the ice to see NHL players suit up for the upcoming 2018 Olympics. For a short time now, the NHL has been expressing its concerns regarding the 2018 Winter Olympics and its proximity to the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Playoffs follow the olympic games by a week, and a majority of club owners unanimously agree that the Stanley Cup comes first. [gallery size="large" ids="12539,12540"] It doesn't come as a surprise since on Monday, April 3 the NHL officially declared that its players will not be suiting up in Peyongchang, South Korea this 2018. A statement from the NHL:We have previously made clear that, while the overwhelming majority of our Clubs are adamantly opposed to disrupting the 2017-18 NHL season for purposes of accommodating Olympic participation by some NHL players, we were open to hearing from any of the other parties who might have an interest in the issue (e.g., the IOC, the IIHF, the NHLPA) as to reasons the Board of Governors might be interested in re-evaluating their strongly held views on the subject. A number of months have now passed and no meaningful dialogue has materialized.
As a result, the International Olympic Committee has reminded club owners that participation in the 2022 Bejing Olympics is conditional on participation in the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Yet club owners seem unfazed. In fact, NHL club owners have been ambivalent about Olympic participation since 1998 when commissioner Gary Bettman brought the NHL to the world stage. Much of the negative sentiment stems from the fact that the Olympics have failed to provide club owners with any real financial motivation. They don't see any bump in ticket sales and don't own any rights to the marketing assets. Plus, the NHL doesn't see Peyongchang as a potential ecosystem for growing the sport. As for China –a place where hockey is growing in popularity– the NHL is taking its chances with the IOC.
In the meantime, USA Hockey and Hockey Canada will be looking to the NCAA, junior players, and former NHL players to fill spots.
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