NHLPA slams ‘shortsighted’ decision to skip 2018 Winter Olympics

It was only a matter of time before the NHL Players Association released a statement on the league’s decision to forgo the 2018 Winter Olympics. Considering their hopes for Olympic participation in the past, the statement wasn’t likely going to be a positive one.

But oh boy is it a doozy.

The statement was released on the NHLPA’s Twitter account on Monday evening. Here’s the full text below.

”The players are extraordinarily disappointed and adamantly disagree with the NHL’s shortsighted decision to not continue our participation in the Olympics.

Any sort of inconvenience the Olympics may cause to next season’s schedule is a small price to pay compared to the opportunity to showcase our game and our greatest players on this enormous international stage. ​

A unique opportunity lies ahead with the 2018 and 2022 Olympics in Asia. The NHL may believe it is penalizing the IOC or the players, or both, for not giving the owners some meaningful concessions in order to induce them to agree to go to PyeongChang. Instead this impedes the growth of our great game by walking away from an opportunity to reach sports fans worldwide.

Moreover, it is doing so after the financial issues relating to insurance and transportation have been resolved with the IOC and IIHF. The League’s efforts to blame others for its decision is as unfortunate as the decision itself. NHL players are patriotic and they do not take this lightly. A decent respect for the opinions of the players matters. This is the NHL’s decision, and its alone. It is very unfortunate for the game, the players and millions of loyal hockey fans.”

There are a few points to be made here, but the NHLPA’s stance is clearly one of dissent from the NHL. If the words “adamantly disagree” weren’t enough, they go on to call the decision “shortsighted” and “unfortunate.”

The statement argues that the schedule concerns — shutting down the league for three weeks in mid-February — are a “small price to pay” for showcasing the sport. The players also say that the decision actually negatively impacts the growth of hockey by not participating in the 2018 Olympics.

There is question, however, about the NHLPA’s claims that the “financial issues” over insurance and transportation were resolved with the IOC.

Regardless, it’s a biting statement from the NHLPA and one that signals that this fight may not be over between the players and the league. With the NHL’s collective bargaining agreement up for termination in two years, how the players and league management handle this could be a roadmap for how well those negotiations could go.