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Jake Voracek no fan of NHL's 'stupid,' 'absolutely ridiculous' stance on Olympics
The lack of support to send players to the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea by the NHL and its owners is “stupid” and “absolutely ridiculous,” according to Jakub Voracek of the Philadelphia Flyers.
Voracek would likely be on the Czech Republic entry into next February’s Games, but right now there has been no definitive “yes” from the NHL about pausing the 2016-17 season for an Olympic break.
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Via Tim Panaccio of CSN Philadelphia, Voracek sounded off:
“Absolutely ridiculous. We have it once every four years. I read something that Bill Daly said we’re not going. Nobody wants you to go.
“The players want to go. Why you’re saying you’re not going? You’re not part of the players association. … Nobody wants you there. They want the players.”
During this week’s NHL general managers meetings, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said there was nothing to new to report on the Olympic front and that the league is focusing on next season’s schedule without the February break in mind.
“I think the overwhelming sentiment of the teams is that it’s very disruptive on the season and there is somewhere between fatigue and negativity on the subject,” Bettman said.
In January, Deputy Commissioner Bill Daly said there needed to be a “game-changer” in the discussions between the NHL, IIHF and IOC for the league to decide to send its players.
The players want to go, as Voracek added. He wants to represent his country. Jonathan Toews wants to wear the Maple Leaf again. He feels skipping 2018 would be “misrepresenting” the sport. Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin want to play for Russia. We all know Ovechkin’s stance on the Olympics – a stance that is backed by his team’s owner.
Time is running out before a final decision needs to be made; and that’s the thing here. The NHL has plainly said “no” to competing in PyeongChang. There’s still time for negotiating, whether that’s the league wanting something from the IIHF and/or the IOC or from the players. But it is interesting that there isn’t a similar feeling toward the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, which represents an untapped market.
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“We’ve said this before too, it’s not the exact same equation in 2022,” Daly said this week. “Certainly, there’s a little more business opportunity in the Chinese games, but it causes the same disruptions. It might be a different evaluation and formula, so they’re different.”
Come February, we could be looking forward to a sixth best-on-best Olympics or preparing to see which goaltender becomes the next Ray LeBlanc.
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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy
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