On Tuesday, December 21st, 2021 the National Hockey League has decided to once again skip out on the 2022 Winter Olympic Games from Beijing, China due to health and safety issues related to the COVID – 19 virus.
This is not surprising as the National Hockey League has paused the 2021 – 2022 NHL season domestically due to the surge in positive testing for COVID – 19 widespread across the league in the United States of America and Canada.
The NHL usually remains mostly neutral out of the major North American sports leagues, so unlike the diplomats who boycotted these upcoming 2022 Olympic Winter Games, that was not the case for the NHL who is not trying to make any sort of a political statement about China’s horrible civil rights situation as well as ongoing human rights abuses there. It is strictly revolving around the coronavirus safety issues.
Similar to the IOC, the league’s foremost interest is and has always been its own internal bottom line over other competitions. That’s why the league also skipped out on the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, and this is not an option available to all the lugers, curlers, ski jumpers, and even figure skaters who need the attention the Olympics brings to finance their sport during the 3 – years off in between each Winter Olympic Games.
This was always going to be a no – brainer for the commissioner of the National Hockey League, Gary Bettman, as well as the NHL player’s union. The Olympics don’t pay them a dime for showing up, and if for some reason NHL players got stranded there to quarantine or a travel restriction prohibited them from returning back to the U. S. and Canada on schedule it could jeopardize the entire 2021 – 2022 NHL season which is already a complete mess at the moment.
Fifty NHL games have recently been postponed through the upcoming Tuesday night, and there’s a league – wide pause or break in NHL action in effect until at least next week. Presuming the presently tightened up protocols return some measure of control to the National Hockey League the 3 – week window which normally would be the Olympic break can be utilized in order to make up those recently and upcoming postponed NHL hockey games.
It will be interesting to see if the National Hockey League decides to go ahead with the NHL All – Star Weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada which would fall on the first two days (February 4th – 5th, 2021) of the 2022 Olympic Winter Games. Only time will tell.
Media Statements
“We understand the decision,” the Olympic broadcaster, NBC, proclaimed via a recently released statement on Tuesday, December 21st, 2021. “But the Olympics remain the greatest hockey tournament in the world regardless of whether the players are from the NHL or other elite leagues around the world.”
“Watching a team being beaten, 15 – 0, is not good for anyone, not for China or for ice hockey,” the new IIHF president, Luc Tardif, expressed last September.
“I’m still a guy that’s wanting to go play in the Olympics,” says the NHL superstar center for the Edmonton Oilers and the Canadian national team, Connor McDavid. “But we also want to make sure it’s safe for everybody. For all the athletes, not just for hockey players.”
The Las Vegas Golden Knights’ goal – tender, Robin Lehner, had previously declined the chance to play for and represent his home country of Sweden for the upcoming 2022 Winter Olympic Games from Beijing, China. He explained that having this possibility hanging over his head, “Is not ideal for my mental health.”
Sources:
Litke, Jim. “Column: NHL skips Olympics again, cites COVID-19 uncertainty”. The Associated Press. December 22, 2021.
“Beijing 2022”. Olympics.com December 22, 2021