Kukla's Korner Hockey

Kukla's Korner Hockey

Why This Year's Olympics is Missing the NHL's Biggest Stars

02/20/2018 at 9:15am EST

By Charles,

The Olympic Games are widely regarded as the pinnacle of sporting achievement. It attracts world-renowned athletes from a wide range of sports and is watched by an audience of up to four billion people.

In April of last year, however, it was revealed that many of ice hockey’s biggest stars weren’t going to be making the trip to South Korea. We’re finding out what’s caused the situation to arise and whether it’s likely to be resolved in the future, below:

Why aren’t they playing?

In short, money. The National Hockey League (NHL) has banned its players from competing due to five main issues:

- The time difference – the huge time difference in Pyeongchang means that many of the games will be played while US audiences are asleep.

- The lack of interest– the NHL board had previously allowed players to compete under the assumption that having the sport’s biggest stars showcased on a worldwide stage would help attract more interest in the game. Unfortunately, this hasn’t been the case.

- The break – the NHL season usually reaches its climax around the same time that the games take place. The NHL board feel that having a three-week break at such a point kills the momentum of the domestic competition.

- Injuries – the 2014 Sochi games saw a raft of players pick up season-ending injuries that negatively impacted clubs in their pursuit of the Stanley Cup.

- Compensation – the International Olympic Committee doesn’t pay any professional league/organization compensation for the use of its athletes.

What has been the players’ reaction?

Around 150-180 players have been stopped from competing at this year’s games. Their reaction, on the whole, has been one of frustration.

In a statement released on Twitter in April, the NHL’s players union said: “The players are extraordinarily disappointed and adamantly disagree with the NHL’s shortsighted decision to not continue our participation in the Olympics.

“The NHL players are patriotic and they do not take this lightly.” They added.

Who is competing in their place?

The majority of this year’s US team is a mixture of college kids and former NHL players that are now competing in international leagues. Forward Mark Arcobello, for example, used to play for Toronto Maple before signing for Swiss A-league side Bern SC in 2016.

There are also places for minor league veterans, such as goalie David Leggio, who now competes in Germany.

The NHL ban has also had a knock-on effect on the selection of players for countries such as Canada and Sweden.

Could the US still win the gold?

It’s unlikely. Bookmaker Stakers.com currently lists the US as third favorites behind the Olympic Athletes of Russia and Canada.

The team lost their opening round matchup against Slovenia but bounced back on Friday with a confidence boosting 2-1 win against Slovakia.

If you do fancy the unknown US team to pull off another “Miracle on Ice”, you can back them at 4/1 on www.stakers.com to win the gold.

Will this dispute be solved for future games?

The next winter Olympics is due to place in Beijing in 2022, which could mean good news for NHL players wanting to compete.

China is a market that is coveted by a number of high-profile sports, including ice hockey, which is why the NHL held a number of pre-season games there in 2017.

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About Kukla's Korner Hockey

Paul Kukla founded Kukla’s Korner in 2005 and the site has since become the must-read site on the ‘net for all the latest happenings around the NHL.

From breaking news to in-depth stories around the league, KK Hockey is updated with fresh stories all day long and will bring you the latest news as quickly as possible.

Email Paul anytime at [email protected]