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The Winter Olympic Games, held every four years in February, include a major hockey tournament featuring many different countries competing for a gold medal. Up until 1998 this hockey tournament included amateur athletes only, however in 1998 an agreement was reached between the International Olympic Committee and the National Hockey League to allow NHL players to participate in these games. NHL players have been participating in Olympic hockey since then, including five different Olympic tournaments. The future of NHL Olympic participation has recently been put in jeopardy, as there is currently a disagreement between the NHL and the IOC regarding financial issues that may prevent NHL players from participating in the Olympic games in the future. Transportation and insurance policies for the players are significant costs that must be covered and at this point, neither side is willing to cover these expenses. The IOC, who have, in the past covered insurance and transportation costs involved in sending NHL players to the Olympics, have decided that they will no longer do so. The NHL also does not want to cover these costs because they feel like they are already giving up a lot in allowing their players to travel to the Olympics. The NHL feels that their players are risking injury and fatigue but they also have to make a significant adjustment to their schedule in order to allow players to attend without receiving any financial benefits in doing so. In the past the International Ice Hockey Federation has helped the IOC cover the millions of dollars worth of expenses for NHL players to travel to the Olympics and its president is confident that they will be able to find the money required to continue to do so. The players also become an important part of this agreement as they would like to participate in the Olympics according to the head of the National Hockey League Players' Association. The NHLPA however, did reject the NHL's recent proposal that would have seen an agreement reached to send the players to the 2018 Winter Olympics. For now NHL Olympic participation is in jeopardy, however all sides except for the NHL would like to see participation and think it would be beneficial to all parties involved. It remains to be seen whether these sides will come to an agreement, but the deadline for a deal to be made is fast approaching and must be done so by January in order to allow all parties to coordinate schedules and travel logistics to attend the 2018 Winter Olympics.

History of NHL Olympic Participation
The NHL has not always been a part of Olympic ice hockey, as the Olympics were initially intended for amateur athletes only. Shortly after a decision was made in 1988 to allow all athletes to participate in the olympics, the NHL came to a decision that players could now attend the winter Olympic games and play for their respective countries. There were multiple factors involved in the decision to send players to the Olympics. The NHL lockout in the 1994-95 season played a major role in the creation of a new NHL Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NHL and the National Hockey League Players' Association (NHLPA). The renegotiation of this contract allowed both parties to voice their opinions on the issue of pausing the NHL season for long enough to send players to the 1998 Nagano Olympics in an effort to promote the North American style of hockey. . The other reason why the decision was made to send NHL players, was that Canada, who had previously protested against the International Ice Hockey Federation for their refusal to allow professional athletes to participate in international hockey, had changed their mind. Canada was the only country left to object to sending professional players to international events and decided to change their position on the matter and joined all the other countries in agreement to send the players.

The 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan marked the first time that NHL players were able attend the Olympic games. Due to the fact that the Olympic Games occur in the month of February, the NHL season schedule prevented NHL players from attending the games, however the decision to allow professional athletes into the Olympics meant that the NHL must alter their schedule and put the season on hold to allow players to play in the Olympics. . The decision to allow NHL players to participate proved to have a significant impact on the tournament as a whole, as many amateur athletes that had participated in prior Olympic games would no longer have a chance to play. This change would allow the IOC to produce the highest quality of hockey that any Winter Olympics had ever seen with the appearance of many NHL stars.



The NHL has now been sending players to the Winter Olympics consistently since 1998 which has included the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, Utah, the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy, the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia and finally the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The agreement to allow NHL players to participate in the Olympic games in an effort to produce higher quality hockey is highlighted by the Canadian Men's hockey team in 2006. In Turin, Italy, Canada sent many NHL stars to the games, who had already combined for 320 goals in that NHL season alone. Although there were teams like the Canadian Hockey Team that were able to produce a number of NHL players, there were also teams from Europe that did not have as many hometown hockey players playing in the NHL and therefore had to rely on talent from the leagues within their countries.

IOC Problems
The International Olympic Committee, is a non-profit organization responsible for the organization of competitive sport across the world. The IOC is currently in a dispute with the NHL on many issues surrounding the NHL's involvement in Olympic Ice Hockey. In the past, the IOC has covered many of the expenses revolving around sending players to the Olympics. They have previously covered travel, insurance and housing expenses while the players attend the Olympics. Of these expenses, insurance costs play a major role in the dispute as they are an integral part of the ability to send players to these events. Insurance for the players helps to cover individual players from injuries and health issues they may have while away from the NHL. It also covers the NHL teams in the event that one of the players gets hurt while participating in the games. The NHL is still required to pay the player even if they return from the Olympics and are forced to miss games resulting from the injury sustained during the Olympics. In the past, the IOC has been willing to cover all of these expenses because bringing these NHL stars to play in the tournament has generated extra revenue for the committee.

Thomas Bach, current president of the IOC, took over control of the committee in 2014 and has since proposed that the NHL should be the ones to cover all of these additional costs. Although Bach feels that the IOC should not have to cover all the extra costs, specifically insuring all of the players that attend, he does feel that it is in the best interest of all parties that the NHL does participate in Olympic hockey. He feels that, "all rational arguments are speaking in favour of participation," (Bach, 2016), and that it is important to everyone that the best players are at the game because the Olympics are about displaying the best athletes for all the world to see.

The Role of the IIHF
The International Ice Hockey Federation, an International body to govern and organize hockey throughout the world by creating tournaments such as the World Cup of Hockey, also has a role to play in NHL Olympic participation. Since the introduction of NHL players at the Winter Olympics, the IIHF has worked with the IOC to cover all the costs to allow players to travel to the Olympics. In order for the NHL to continue to participate in the Olympic games the IIHF may have to continue to help pay some, if not all, of these expenses, especially with the IOC stating they are no longer willing to pay. Despite the lack of traction between the NHL and IOC, René Fasel, president of the IIHF remains optimistic that NHL players will be at the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea.

In November of 2016 Fasel told reporters that the IIHF will produce the money required for insurance and travel costs to send players to the Olympic games in 2018. He stated, "I think we will balance the budget," and "We will find the money," (Fasel, 2016). Despite the change in the agreement between the NHL and the IOC, according to Fasel, the NHL will still be provided fair compensation for having to change their season schedule in order to accommodate the Winter Olympics.

Fasel and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman have worked together for many years and were in fact both in their respective roles when the understanding was first reached to allow NHL players to travel to the Olympics. Currently, Fasel and Bettman share similar thoughts about the disagreement. Both feel that the NHL should not be obligated to cover the transportation and insurance costs that go along with sending players to these games. This understanding was part of the initial agreement reached back in 1998 and Fasel feels that this promise should and will not be forgotten. As of now, the IIHF will have to play a major role as a mediator between the NHL and IOC if NHL players are to continue to participate in Olympic hockey.

NHL Problems


The NHL has been sending players to the Olympics since 1998 and since then the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation have covered the costs of sending them there. The costs have mainly included transportation and insurance for the players and have added up to close to ten million dollars per Olympics. The recent decision by the IOC to stop paying these expenses has resulted in a debate on whether or not the NHL will participate in the upcoming Olympics, as the NHL also does not feel obligated to pay these expenses.

The NHL has multiple issues with sending their players to the Olympics which include a change in the NHL schedule, the possibility that the players may be injured while participating, and the lack of any financial benefits that the NHL may receive from allowing players to play for their countries. The risk of player injury at the Olympics is one of the biggest problem for the NHL and is the reason why insurance costs come to the forefront of the disagreement. Injuries have a big impact on the league overall, but more specifically on its teams as it can affect the overall success of a team throughout the season, as well as impacting the attendance and fan base of each team. If an NHL team's star player attends the Olympics and suffers an injury that prevents them from being able to play for a significant period of time it may not only diminish the team's chances of winning the Stanley Cup, but also cause fans of that team to be less interested in watching a team missing their star player. A perfect example of this type of problem was in 2014 when John Tavares (ice hockey), pictured on the right, tore his MCL at the 2014 Olympics. The injury forced him to miss the rest of the NHL season, an unfortunate situation for the New York Islanders as he was their best player and captain. This put the General Manager of the New York Islanders in a difficult situation and caused him to attack Olympic hockey by arguing that the NHL does not benefit at all from sending their players to the Olympics. Another issue that owners raise is the idea of fatigue and how players must return from this tournament and continue to play the final two months of the NHL season. They feel that players that did not participate in the Olympics, or teams lacking Olympic stars, have an advantage over those who did for the remainder of the season, as they were able to rest, while Olympic participants had to give it their all trying to win a gold medal.

The NHL also has an issue with the Olympics in regard to scheduling, as they have to create a break in the schedule in which there are no games for a period of time to allow players to travel to the Olympics. The Winter Olympic Games take place every four years in February, right in the middle of the NHL season and so as to prevent any unfair advantages to certain teams, the NHL shuts down for two to three weeks. NHL owners are becoming more and more hesitant to put the season on hold, mainly because of a lack of financial benefits to them. . The break in the NHL season in February is also an issue for the NHL because February is a time of year which lacks market competition. The National Football League and Major League Baseball are both in their off-season in February and so this is a great opportunity for an increase in TV audiences for the NHL. In other words, general managers and the league do not feel the need to make changes for the Olympics without receiving anything in return.

The issue of who covers the costs of sending the players is the centre of the issue and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has stated that the NHL will not be covering these costs which will add up to,"many, many, many millions of dollars," (Bettman, 2016). The NHL does not feel like the financial benefits of sending it's players to the Olympics outweighs the millions of dollars they would have to spend to cover the costs of insurance and transportation. NHL Players actually benefit more from participating in the Olympics as they have the ability to increase their fame as well as having a chance at winning a gold medal and championship for their country. The owners, on the other hand, receive almost no benefit from allowing their players to attend the Olympics. In fact, the NHL does not sell more tickets or receive higher TV ratings following the Olympics like they would have hoped. The NHL also does not receive any revenue from the IOC for having its players there.

In sending its players to the Olympics for the first time in 1998, the NHL had hoped to benefit financially from the tournament through worldwide exposure. Regulations set out by the IOC surrounding marketing, advertising and media coverage prevent the NHL from being able to receive any increases in revenue from the its exposure on an international stage. The NHL can not market its players as they travel to the Olympics but also do not have the ability to re-play or show highlights of the games played at the Olympics. In essence, the NHL has no way of selling a product to consumers while they are at the Olympics and therefore does not generate any extra revenue while their season is on hold for two weeks.

The Players Reaction
The decision regarding NHL Olympic participation mostly involves the IOC, NHL and the IIHF, however there is one other party involved: the players. The National Hockey League Players' Association also play an important role in this issue as they must also agree to a new Collective Bargaining Agreement. Donald Fehr, the executive director of the NHLPA, has stated that the players do want to attend the Olympic games and enjoy playing in any major hockey tournament,. At the same time there are players that are not thrilled about the idea of a two to three week break in the middle of the season, thus making the decision that much more critical.

Alexander Ovechkin, a Russian hockey player currently playing in the NHL for the Washington Capitals has made his feelings about NHL participation in the Olympics known to the media. He has played in many world tournaments and Olympics for Team Russia before, most notably in 2015 when he quickly left his NHL team to join Russia at the 2015 Hockey World Championship. He left immediately following his teams elimination from the NHL Playoffs to join the tournament, which was already underway. In an interview Alex Ovechkin told reporters that he will be playing for his country, regardless of whether or not an agreement is reached between the NHL and the IOC. He also added that he believes he will not be the only NHL player to leave for the Olympics and that other players will follow him there. For many players the Olympics is the biggest stage to play on outside of playing for the Stanley Cup, especially because it occurs once every four years. Although the players have to worry about similar issues as the NHL, such as injuries, many would like to participate, and some like Alex Ovechkin, say they will be there no matter what.

NHL and the NHLPA have had ongoing negotiations over the past couple of years regarding the issues of the Olympics, but also regarding a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). In December of 2016, the NHLPA rejected the latest offer that the NHL presented proposing the extension of the latest CBA in exchange for the ability to participate in the upcoming Olympics in South Korea. The deal centred around the fact of extending the current CBA by three years in an effort to get rid of the opt-out clause that the NHLPA has the ability to exercise in 2019. The players were offered the ability to participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics in return and so they decided to reject the proposal. .

NHL Decision Coming
In February of 2014, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman announced that the NHL would soon decide on whether or not Olympic hockey will include NHL players into the future. At that point in time the 2014 Winter Olympics were taking place and both Bettman and NHLPA commissioner Bill Daley stressed that discussions about the issue would definitely not take place until the 2014 Olympics ended. Now, with the 2018 Winter Olympics fast approaching, the decision on the future of NHL Olympic participation must be made soon. Although the Olympics will not take place until February of 2018, the are other complications that must be resolved well before then. The NHL has set up a deadline of January 2017 to reach this agreement so as to provide the league with enough time to create its 2017-2018 season schedule, with or without a two week break in the schedule for the Olympics. The NHL regular season schedule will be drastically different if they decide to attend the Olympics as there would have to be a two to three week pause in the schedule, a big reason why the decision must be made sooner rather than later.

With January 2017 just one month away it is likely that a decision will be made soon, either to send the players or keep them in the NHL. Although there has not been much progress to date in resolving the issue, it is likely that the time constraints will begin to play a major role in reaching a decision. In order to reach an agreement it is likely that both sides will need to work together to keep the NHL players in the Olympic Games.