[News] NHL will not participate in 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Joborule

The World Cup can easily fill in the void of the Olympics, and the NHL (and NHLPA) gets perks out of it. It's the same thing in the end, best versus best. It'll take a while to get to the prestige the Olympics built, but it's definitely achievable.

I'm sure trampoline fans might view their World Championships as on par with the Olympics, but for everyone else, the Olympics count for more - because it's part of a larger competition.

A standalone hockey world cup could exceed an amateur Olympics, but will never exceed a best-on-best Olympics in my view.

[getbak]

We're saved...

Theo Fleury‏ @TheoFleury14

Hey Tom Renney I'm available #Peyoncheng2018 @HockeyCanada

Bring back #74!

[Mister Yamoto]

Once people get used to a World Cup it will be better than the Olympics IMO. They just need to make a few minor changes with the format.

It is possible to have a best on best tournament without teams full of scrubs from obscure Euro leagues.

[vilzeh]

Olympics are the Olympics, World Cup is just meh.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by Mister Yamoto

Once people get used to a World Cup it will be better than the Olympics IMO. They just need to make a few minor changes with the format.

It is possible to have a best on best tournament without teams full of scrubs from obscure Euro leagues.

Nah, more teams makes for a more interesting tournament. A large number of teams is an asset to tournaments like the FIFA World Cup and NCAA basketball March Madness.

If the World Cup is to do anything better than the Olympics, it would have to include more teams, not less.

[pgsieve]

I'm just curious what avenue the league really has to stop them? It's not like it's the regular NHL guys that get invited, it is the leagues stars. If I was any one of McDavid, Crosby, Ovechkin, or Price I would just go anyway.
An

[Resolute 14]

Originally Posted by pgsieve

I'm just curious what avenue the league really has to stop them? It's not like it's the regular NHL guys that get invited, it is the leagues stars. If I was any one of McDavid, Crosby, Ovechkin, or Price I would just go anyway.
An

They would be suspended by the NHL without pay - which for these guys will result in several hundred thousand dollars in lost salary - and the IIHF already generally honours NHL suspensions, so that alone could put a stop to it.

But more simply, if the NHLPA does anything at all to encourage it, the league would have every right to crush the players - individually and collectively - in court over breach of contract. They would be acting in direct violation of the CBA.

[MarkGio]

At this point I'm starting to think the league likes lock outs. Maybe it's like Schadenfreude for them.

[TheFlamesVan]

I can see it already, Ovi is going to end up being the only NHL player who goes and he's going to score a ridiculous amount of goals.

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by Resolute 14

They would be suspended by the NHL without pay - which for these guys will result in several hundred thousand dollars in lost salary - and the IIHF already generally honours NHL suspensions, so that alone could put a stop to it.

But more simply, if the NHLPA does anything at all to encourage it, the league would have every right to crush the players - individually and collectively - in court over breach of contract. They would be acting in direct violation of the CBA.

They haven't said they would suspend players who would go anyway yet. LeBrun on TSN said they might do that or they might leave to a team by team basis.

[Fighting Banana Slug]

The appeal to Olympic hockey in North America has been the NHL participation. Prior to that, it was professional Russians playing amateurs, with predictable results (with one notable exception). That tells me it is the NHL players, that make the tournament, not the fact it is part of the Olympics. Similarly, the Canada/World cups were fantastic prior to the last one, because it was the best NHL players. I think it could be revived, if they lose the gimmick teams.
As for the non-NA market, I have no idea what they care about, but I don't see this massive loss of growth potential by sitting out. Was there a spike in interest in Japan after Nagano? Italy after Turin? I doubt it. People will watch the Olympics because they are the Olympics and will still see national teams play hockey. I am hoping for junior age players, because the games will still be exciting, likely more competitive for more countries and those non-traditional markets would still likely be interested in the NHL once exposed, because it is the best talent in the world.

[Flaming Choy]

Found a pretty good Puck Daddy article on what the IOC and NHL were trying to get.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/hate-th...120841649.html

[Senator Clay Davis]

World Cup might eventually get to be as important as the Olympics....in Canada only. But it has no chance to be anything but an also ran, borderline irrelevant tournament outside Canada (even with ESPN on board in Murica). And even in Canada it's probably a 1/10 shot of actually becoming as important as the Olympics. Timing matters, most people want to enjoy the last little bit of summer in September and not waste time watching what's perceived as a second rate hockey tournament relative to the Olympics. I am surprised they are choosing to forgo China though, hockey is the glamour event of the Winter Olympics so you'd think they'd wanna be front and centre in Beijing.

[Hot_Flatus]

Originally Posted by Fire

The players were not smart enough to have guaranteed Olympic participation in the CBA. Therefore it was up for bargaining. The NHLPA didn't care enough about the Olympics to make a deal with the NHL. That was their decision. Nothing greasy about it. In the end I doubt any NHL players will play in Olympics. If a player did go it would portray them as selfish by putting themselves ahead of their teammates, their club and most importantly their fans.

The NHL would never have signed off on a guaranteed Olympics clause is the CBA.....portraying the players as idiots because of that suggestion is silly. Both sides could barely get a deal done that covered the basics, twice. And yes, it is greasy for the league to come out and try to pin it on the players by saying they could have gone had they extended the current CBA. This is solely between the League and the IOC and their inability to come to terms.

I can certainly say as an enthusiast of the Olympics and amateur sports, I won't be watching the NHL when the Olympic games are on so it makes no difference to me if the players go against the leagues wishes. The truly sad part is that this all but guarantees another lockout with the way the two sides are heading through all of this.

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by Senator Clay Davis

World Cup might eventually get to be as important as the Olympics....in Canada only. But it has no chance to be anything but an also ran, borderline irrelevant tournament outside Canada (even with ESPN on board in Murica). And even in Canada it's probably a 1/10 shot of actually becoming as important as the Olympics. Timing matters, most people want to enjoy the last little bit of summer in September and not waste time watching what's perceived as a second rate hockey tournament relative to the Olympics. I am surprised they are choosing to forgo China though, hockey is the glamour event of the Winter Olympics so you'd think they'd wanna be front and centre in Beijing.

Oh as long as the IOC doesn't bar them they will certainly be in Beijing. Especially after last weeks announcement.

[habernac]

Originally Posted by David Struch

The BIG names for Team Canada could include the likes of Mason Raymond, Marc-Antoine Pouliot, Brandon Gormley, and Shaone Morrisonn.

Theo's ready:

Theo Fleury‏Verified account @TheoFleury14 9h9 hours ago
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Would anyone here still watch if the NHL players don't go? I'm not getting up in the middle of the night to watch Spengler Cup action

[GirlySports]

Originally Posted by Fighting Banana Slug

The appeal to Olympic hockey in North America has been the NHL participation. Prior to that, it was professional Russians playing amateurs, with predictable results (with one notable exception). That tells me it is the NHL players, that make the tournament, not the fact it is part of the Olympics. Similarly, the Canada/World cups were fantastic prior to the last one, because it was the best NHL players. I think it could be revived, if they lose the gimmick teams.
As for the non-NA market, I have no idea what they care about, but I don't see this massive loss of growth potential by sitting out. Was there a spike in interest in Japan after Nagano? Italy after Turin? I doubt it. People will watch the Olympics because they are the Olympics and will still see national teams play hockey. I am hoping for junior age players, because the games will still be exciting, likely more competitive for more countries and those non-traditional markets would still likely be interested in the NHL once exposed, because it is the best talent in the world.

In Europe they care about the World Championships. That event is huge.

[Senator Clay Davis]

Originally Posted by Weitz

Oh as long as the IOC doesn't bar them they will certainly be in Beijing. Especially after last weeks announcement.

The IOC will unequivocally bar them. You don't mess with a group that corrupt and expect to get your way later on. Only way the IOC lets them in Beijing after skipping Korea is probably having the NHL pay the IOC for the right to go. But this is the end for the NHL in the Olympics if they don't go now, IOC doesn't forgive or forget.

[Matty81]

The IOC is brutal but the NHL is not exactly an upstanding corporate citizen either... when you see their back channel dialogue on concussions and violence that has been released coupled with Bettman's scorn for grassroots access to the pro game (pushing broadcast to cable, pushing tickets and revenue generation to the absolute max freezing out mid/lower income families).

Ultimately at a time when leagues like the NBA are breaking their back for exposure in Asia the NHL turning their back on this is foolish. There should be more to the league's strategy then maximize $s today. Bettman has made his owners more money and protected their short term interests by damaging the long term future of hockey on a number of fronts.

[JiriHrdina]

Originally Posted by Matty81

The IOC is brutal but the NHL is not exactly an upstanding corporate citizen either... when you see their back channel dialogue on concussions and violence that has been released coupled with Bettman's scorn for grassroots access to the pro game (pushing broadcast to cable, pushing tickets and revenue generation to the absolute max freezing out mid/lower income families).

Ultimately at a time when leagues like the NBA are breaking their back for exposure in Asia the NHL turning their back on this is foolish. There should be more to the league's strategy then maximize $s today. Bettman has made his owners more money and protected their short term interests by damaging the long term future of hockey on a number of fronts.

I think this post basically highlights that you are mixing your hate for Bettman, driven by other issues, with the decision made here.

His admittedly disgusting emails about concussion have no relevance on this matter.

And do you think this is Bettman's call? He is the voice of the owners. If he is saying they aren't going - it isn't because Bettman doesn't want to go, it is because the owners don't want to go.