Across the pond, as Denmark’s national hockey team secured its first-ever berth to the Olympics, several reports emerged that the NHL is nearing an announcement that its players will participate in the 2022 Beijing Games.
ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported on Sunday that an NHL, NHLPA, IIHF, and International Olympic Committee are close to an agreement.
It’s been a moving target, but all signs point to a decision next week on whether NHL players are going to the 2022 Beijing Olympics or not.
Sources I’ve talked to suggest an agreement between NHL, NHLPA, IIHF & Olympic committee is close, just down to some final items.
— Emily Kaplan (@emilymkaplan) August 29, 2021
Kaplan added that the NHL has a revised schedule without the three-week Olympic break if the pandemic forces the league to change its plans next season.
The NHL plans to have All Star in Las Vegas either way.
If NHL players are going to the Olympics, they’ll keep already released schedule (w/ 16-day Olympic break) and players will fly to Beijing on Sunday from Vegas.
If NHL players aren’t going, new schedule will be released.
— Emily Kaplan (@emilymkaplan) August 29, 2021
Meanwhile, the International Hockey Newsletter, Hockey Wanderlüst, is reporting that the NHL’s Olympics participation is a foregone conclusion after talking to league sources.
The NHL did not participate in the 2018 Olympic Games in PyeongChang. That year the Olympic Athletes from Russia, led by then-out-of-the-NHL Ilya Kovalchuk, took home gold.
Headline photo: Elizabeth Kong/RMNB
