iggy_oi defending a union? Now I've seen everything :P
Quote:
Originally Posted by iggy_oi
Didn’t the IOC offer to pay the insurance premiums?
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No, the IIHF did. Not that the NHL should really care about where the money comes from if it does come from somewhere else, but they did say that the IIHF spending significant on NHL athletes instead of the grass-root hockey-growing expenditures it wanted to do would be a mistake. Especially if the only reason for the NHL to go to the Olympics is to grow the game, taking money from an organization thats purpose is to do so is counter intuitive.
I don't know if you can say that gate revenue would be the same. There is hockey fatigue and 10 months of hockey might mean less attendance. Throw in the World Cup, where the NHL does see that revenue, and if that's the "best on best" it's now potentially going to be the tournament seeing high attendance and additional profit for the NHL.
On top of that, you have the risk of injuries to the athletes.