With each game postponement, the National Hockey League’s participation in the Winter Olympics becomes less likely.
In addition to halting cross-border travel through this week’s holiday break, the league announced Sunday that a decision about players’ participation at the best-on-best tournament in China will be announced in the coming days. A decision must be made by Jan. 10. On Monday night, the NHL and NHLPA agreed to begin their holiday break Dec. 22, and practices will resume Sunday.
The Sabres and Blue Jackets were scheduled to meet here Monday night and again Thursday in Nationwide Arena.
Skipping the Olympics would allow the NHL to reschedule some games for the three-week February break – many arenas are booked with concerts or events – and would protect the league’s plan to not have the Stanley Cup Playoffs drag into late summer. There are also concerns about the strict protocols athletes will endure in Beijing and fear of a long quarantine following a positive Covid-19 test.
Yet there are still players across the NHL who want to represent their respective home country on the global stage, including Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin, who played for Sweden when the league didn’t participate at the Winter Olympics in 2018.
“Yeah, playing for your country, playing in the Olympics, it’s a great thing,” Dahlin told The News. “Last time I went there, it didn’t go very well, so I would love to go back and do it again, for sure.”
Tuch, who has not played since June 24, was expected to make his Sabres debut Monday night against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Dahlin had yet to hear from anyone regarding his potential participation, although retired NHL defenseman turned Team Sweden scout Niklas Kronwall was recently dispatched to watch a Sabres game in Buffalo.
Dahlin is on pace for career highs in goals (16) and assists (50). A Buffalo defenseman has not reached the 15-goal mark since Alexei Zhitnik in 1997-98. Dahlin has experienced growing pains while playing a first-pairing defense role for the first time since he was drafted No. 1 overall by the Sabres in 2018.
Dahlin, 21, is averaging a team-high 23:39 per game. Only 17 defensemen in the NHL have been on the ice more than Dahlin this season. And he has played well enough over the past four seasons to merit consideration for Team Sweden.
Dahlin’s 125 points since debuting with the Sabres in 2018-19 ranks fourth among all Swedish defenseman during that span, trailing only Victor Hedman (184), Erik Karlsson (126) and John Klingberg (126).
“The past few weeks, it’s been better,” Dahlin said of his increased role. “I’m growing into the position. This is the first year I’m playing against the top lines on the other teams, playing a lot of minutes. It’s different, but it’s a lot of fun. It’s a process. If I work hard, it’s going to be good.”
"There's no way I would let players go to China for the Winter Olympics, I'd cancel the All-Star Weekend in February in Las Vegas and put that off to 2023, and I'd use what was supposed to be a three-week break in February to rejigger the schedule," Mike Harrington writes.
There’s also redemption on Dahlin’s mind. He appeared in only two games for Sweden at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, opening the tournament as a healthy scratch despite the absence of NHL players in South Korea. Dahlin led Sweden to a silver medal at the IIHF World Junior Championship in January 2018, totaling six points in seven games at the tournament in Buffalo.
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman was a vocal opponent of the league’s participation in the Winter Olympics before the Covid-19 pandemic because it disrupts the 82-game schedule. However, the NHL and NHLPA agreed to Olympic participation as part of the revised Collective Bargaining Agreement in July 2020.
This opened the door for the NHL to participate in the Winter Olympics for the first time since 2014.
“Playing for your country, representing your country, playing with the Tre Kronor, it’s amazing,” Dahlin said. “Everyone is watching at home. Playing somewhere else. Everything around it is great.
"It’s so much fun. ... You see all these great athletes walking around in the same area. The atmosphere makes it such a great time.”
Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby was the opposing center for the first shift of Fitzgerald's NHL debut.
Some NHLers have stated they won’t participate, including former Sabres goalie Robin Lehner, who cited mental health concerns after learning about the protocols at the Winter Olympics, saying, “For health reasons, me and my psychiatrist decided with agents that I’m not going to go, and I wish them all the best.”
Still, many are reportedly interested in participating, but the NHL has no interest in extending the regular season into May. Additionally, the worsening situation surrounding Covid-19 has already led to capacity limitations in Canada – Montreal played a game against Phildelphia without fans last week in the Bell Centre – and in a gate-revenue-driven league, an economic blow to owners will trickle down to the players.
Earlier this month, Bettman announced the salary cap is expected to rise $1 million for 2022-23. That’s unlikely to occur, though, if Covid-19 continues to disrupt what had been a successful season.
“We don’t know much yet,” Dahlin said. “We’ll see what happens. If I get asked and everything is good to go, I’m willing to go, for sure.”
