Official: NHL will not participate in 2018 Olympics

[Alfie11]

per Sportsnet

[Josh]

Damn, that really sucks :(

[Jasmine]

I'm ok with that...by now. Its been looking that way for a while now and the contrary would have surprised me. ..... So on the plus side, it means no break in the calendar next season and no risk of injuries just before the last stretch of the season..

[Josh]

[Josh]

Hey, at least we have the totally-kosher World Cup........

[Matt the Aussie]

Hey, at least we have the totally-kosher World Cup........

*shudders*

[Alfie11]

I think this was the right call. As much as the Olympics was awesome, it makes no sense for the league to compete. I guess it helps grow the game a little in markets without an NHL team, but not really sure it's worth the risk of losing a guy to injury.

The World Cup was executed poorly, but it could be a good thing.

[Alfie11]

Apparently Russia won't let Ovechkin join them for the Olympics unless he retires from the NHL

[Jasmine]

Also If the Caps owner choses to ignore the final call the NHL made, it doesn't mean he could play. The IIHF could say his 'international card' is not valid without the NHL permission, which he wouldn't have. Another thing, why him and not the American guy or Canadian guy sitting beside him in the locker room?

[Jasmine]

The guys on the panel discussed this and the insiders said that eventually, the NHL will announce the possible sanctions if some players end up going to the "Games" without NHL permission. We haven't heard the end of this...

[Jasmine]

http://www.tsn.ca/how-the-nhl-can-prevent-players-from-going-to-olympics-1.715216

So, what can the NHL do to curb individual players from leaving their club?

One option would be to issue a rule stating that any player who leaves his club next February to play in the Olympics will be banned from playing for his team for the remainder of the season, including the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The belief is any such unilateral order would quickly be grieved by the NHL Players’ Association, who would likely feel that stiff a penalty and change to the rules would need to be bargained.

There are a number of other, more creative options on the table.

According to the Collective Bargaining Agreement, any player under NHL contract leaving his club to play for another without being loaned is grounds for a material breach of contract.

A club could then seek to terminate that player’s contract, and even potentially sue that player for millions in damages that occurred as a result of the breach, including an impact on the team’s poor performance or lost revenue due to reduced attendance.