It's not looking good (at all) for the NHL's continued participation in the Olympics.
What has seemingly been years of back-and-forth between the NHL, NHLPA, International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and International Olympic Committee (IOC) came to a semi-conclusion today. The NHL released a statement declaring its intention to not send players to the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in South Korea, while offering detail into some of the negotiating points that arose during discussions, as well:
The NHL has released the following statement regarding the 2018 Olympic Winter Games. pic.twitter.com/nqjYtsLHew
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) April 3, 2017
Many players were outspoken in their desire to go to the Olympics, as it has been a regular every-four-years interruption of the NHL schedule since 1998. But haggling over insurance costs, the concept of (again) shutting the league down for multiple weeks, and potential injury risks did not appeal to NHL owners.
There remains some skepticism as to whether this announcement is a final decision, but at least for now, we take the NHL at its word: there will not be NHL players in the next Winter Olympics, and that's a shame.
