from Peter O’Neil at the National Post,

Hockey Canada formally complained to the International Ice Hockey Federation on Thursday over an IIHF official denigrating players such as Sidney Crosby for not playing at the IIHF world hockey championship.

Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson appeared to be in damage-control mode after speaking earlier in the day to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman.

But Nicholson dodged a question on whether he is concerned the IIHF’s attack on no-shows could jeopardize Hockey Canada’s ability to recruit players for future international competitions and championships.

“Gary was upset, there was no question he was upset that there was no appreciation for the National Hockey League owners allowing their players to come here,” Nicholson told reporters before the Canada-Russia quarter-final match.

“We have a lot of players who would like to play, but they can’t play without the support of the ownership.”

continued

added 3:32pm, from Scott Burnside of ESPN,

U.S. general manager Brian Burke believes the International Ice Hockey Federation should abandon holding a world championship in Olympic years.

“It’s nothing short of based on greed in my opinion. The IIHF doesn’t want to acknowledge that,” Burke told ESPN.com on Thursday morning.

Burke said the IIHF makes about $20 million from the tournament, and therefore have a vested interest in getting top players to take part. But national teams traditionally have struggled to attract top players in Olympic years.

continued