NHL Players’ Participation in the 2014 Winter Olympics: A question of Olympic proportions
The Vancouver Olympics was a spectacle. An unmitigated, uncorrupted sporting spectacle the likes of which we won’t see again until Sochi, Russia. Canada erupted in celebrations like a volcano of red and white and the ratings were through the roof when Canada fought off the United States in the Men’s Ice Hockey final. The International Olympic Committee said that an estimated 114 million people worldwide watched that game.
The NHL, though, didn’t get anything out of it. The IOC protects its media rights diligently and that is one of many concerns the NHL supports.
With those concerns in mind, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said that no decision had been made regarding NHL players’ participation in the 2014 Winter Olympics and that they were in no hurry to make that decision. “The IOC hasn’t even done its broadcasting rights yet, and who broadcasts the game in Canada and the United States may be an issue that needs to be satisfied for us if we’re going to make the effort to go.”
Bettman said that the participation in the Olympics was a complicated matter with many issues that needed to be addressed to make it happen. “Raising this to an emotional level, rhetoric at a public and private level — that isn’t what’s going to get this done.”
But it is indeed very emotional. Not to undermine the Stanley Cup, but that is still a sort of a personal achievement. The players do it for themselves, for their teammates and the fans of the city.
The Olympics, on the other hand, is a whole different ball game. You fight to win for the millions and millions of your countrymen who are cheering for you. It is very emotional and Bettman would be wise to not ignore that aspect of it. Not just for the players either. Yes, the players take an opportunity to represent their countries very seriously but the fans are the ones really hungry for the Olympics. They have tasted it in all its glory once and they want more. If the NHL and the IOC can’t come to terms for whatever reason, the fallout would be severe.
John Furlong, the Chief Executive of the Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee, would attest to that. “If you don’t find a way to come together, you’ll never be forgiven,” Furlong said. “The idea that the best men and women won’t be playing, the fans would never forgive you.” Ultimately it is about the fans and the NHL can’t but give them what they want.
The players see it that way too. Ottawa Senators and the New Jersey Devils’ Captains have come out strong in favour of Olympic participation. “It’s unbelievable, the emotion it creates,” Jamie Langenbrunner of the Devils said. He added further that Olympics participation was an obligation to the fans who want to see them play the game at its pinnacle.
Speaking at the World Hockey Summit, Bettman admitted that the popular opinion was in favour of Olympic participation, making sure to let it be known that he wasn’t against it either. He did, however, mention that the decision ultimately would be made by the league’s board of governors. They would be, more than anything else, looking out for the NHL and the Olympics takes its toll on the NHL.
The Olympics throw a wrench into the NHL’s schedule. There is the risk of injury to players which would mean they won’t be able to play for the teams they signed with and for all of that the non-profit International Olympic Committee does not compensate the NHL. There are indeed problems but it’s not without its upsides.
As a marketing opportunity, nothing trumps the Olympics and that is something the NHL can indeed capitalize on. Brian Cooper, Director of Hockey Canada, said that instead of even considering opting out of the Olympics, the focus should be on greater participation. “The marketing value that the Olympics brings to the sport cannot be quantified. It is priceless.”
There are still many years until Sochi to tweak out the details and work out a solution that is good for everyone. Till then, there would be plenty of head-butting. The World Hockey Summit was just round one.
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