When NHL players signed a new collective bargaining agreement in 2020, they earned a massive win: The league agreed to allow players to participate in the 2022 and 2026 Olympic Games.
In the previous CBA, there was no language about Olympic participation.
Though the players won this battle, the new Olympic CBA clause always carried a caveat: it was contingent on the NHL and NHLPA reaching a deal with the International Ice Hockey Federation and the International Olympic Committee.
The four sides talked on and off for the last several months — bypassing some arbitrary deadlines — and finally reached an agreement on Friday.
In a February 2020 meeting, the NHL outlined some of the things it wanted — NHL logos and advertisements featured in Olympic games, the ability to use Olympic highlights on NHL Network or NHL.com — which it hoped would help promote the game.
Those involved with the discussions said the IIHF and IOC knew they held leverage, as NHL players have been pretty adamant about how badly they wanted to go.
The IIHF and IOC already agreed to pick up travel costs and insurance for NHL players.
Another big issue that came up was COVID-19 insurance: What would happen if a player contracts COVID at the Olympics, and if it affects him afterward? The NHL and NHLPA found a provider for COVID insurance, but it was expensive, and the IIHF and IOC said they would not cover it.
If the league feels like it needs to use the Olympic break to make up games — to get a full season in, and recoup as much hockey-related revenue as possible — it could exercise this clause.
4 and 5 — was going to happen with or without Olympic participation.
While the tournament had its highlights — who can forget the electrifying 23-and-under “Team North America” featuring Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews? — it was also a preseason event, with gameplay that confirmed it.
Canada won the World Cup, just like it won the previous two “best-on-best” Olympic tournaments in Vancouver .
The NHL did not participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, ending a run of five consecutive tournaments in which it allowed its players to appear.
The 12 teams are ranked by record after group play, and the top four teams advance to the quarterfinals — typically, the three group winners and the best second-place team after tiebreakers.
Nine teams qualified for the tournament in the initial round; Denmark, Slovakia and Latvia qualified in a round of qualification games played Aug.
NHL players have gotten used to COVID protocols for the last 1 1/2 years, from daily testing to hotel isolation to the masks and social distancing inside venues.
The IOC developed sports-specific guidelines for position tests, from how competitors could be replaced and disqualification standards in team sports.
The Beijing Games are expected to go well beyond Tokyo’s protocols.
— will be placed in a very tight bubble enforced by the Chinese government.” Fehr also wrote that “it is anticipated that there also will be significant restrictions on where players can go even within the bubble , as well as numerous other requirements, like daily COVID testing, social distancing, mask wearing, and frequent temperature checks.