from Chris Johnston of Sportsnet,

If hockey’s powerbrokers were simply trying to determine whether it was best for the top players in the sport to participate in the Sochi Olympics next year then there would be no reason for everyone to descend on Manhattan for two days of potentially contentious meetings.

The answer to that question is as obvious it always has been to virtually every fan and player of the game. Yes, the NHLers should be there. It is what is right for the sport of hockey – if not also the business of hockey.

And you can be sure that everyone sitting in the boardroom above the Avenue of the Americas on Thursday and Friday is already aware of that fact. They have been for quite some time.

However, don’t for a second believe that the NHL’s participation in a fifth straight Olympic Games is as much a certainty as we’ve all thought. On the eve of the meetings, two sources who view the issue from different vantage points told Sportsnet.ca that they could envision a scenario in which a deal isn’t reached.

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