TURIN. Hockey players from the National Hockey League will also be part of the hockey tournament at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Turin. Players from the NHL will also play at the 2030 Olympics. TSN TV reported on this.
This was already confirmed by the management of the professional league, which announced it on Friday after an agreement with the players’ association NHLPA, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The NHL has been announcing for a long time that it is in its best interest to allow hockey players to participate in the Olympics, which are regularly held in the middle of the season. Hockey players from the best league in the world last participated in this tournament in 2014.
The gold was then won by the Canadian representatives after the final triumph over Sweden. Slovaks with Zden Char, Marián Hoss, Jaroslav Halák and Tomáš Tatar finished in the penultimate 11th place.
Tardif: We did it
“We know how important international competition is to our players,” said NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman.
“We did it. It’s been two years of work and the past six months have been more intense,” the AP agency quoted IIHF President Luc Tardif as saying.
Milan – barring other unforeseen circumstances, such as the pandemic that caused NHL players to miss the 2022 Olympics in Beijing – will be the first Olympic opportunity for a generation of stars led by Canadians Connor McDavid, Nathan MacKinnon and Cale Makar or Americans Auston Matthews, Jack Eichel and Adam Fox.
“I really want to play in the Olympics. I was hoping for it. I think everyone knows what I want. We all want it, all these guys who didn’t have a chance to represent their country against the best,” McDavid said on Thursday.
The NHL suspended its season for the Olympic tournament five times between 1998 and 2014. However, its players’ participation in the 2018 Olympics was halted by disagreements over who would pay for player insurance and the time difference between the Republic of Korea and North America. Four years later, it was mainly the coronavirus pandemic.
World Cup as a general
According to several relevant journalists, the World Cup in 2025 should be a small rehearsal for the stars. It will be under the auspices of the NHL and only players with a contract in this competition will play there.
Therefore, the management of the competition chose a simpler option with only four national teams. Canada, USA, Sweden and Finland will compete against each other.
Gradually, the league wants to adjust and expand this format, its ambition is to organize this tournament alternately with the Olympics.
The tournament will take place in four cities in each of the participating countries, a total of seven matches will be played, and the provisional date is February 12-20, 2025. The World Cup was last held in 2016, and the “maple leaves” defeated Team Europe in the final.
“This is the start of a new era for international hockey. We see this event as a cornerstone for a larger World Cup,” said NHLPA Executive Director Marty Walsh.
The costs will be borne by the IIHF
The NHL commissioner said that during the 2026 and 2030 Olympics, club owners will not pay “big costs” for players’ travel and insurance.
These will be on the IIHF and the relevant organizing committees. Tardif added that national federations and Olympic committees will also contribute.
The head of the IIHF further informed that a committee meeting will take place next week, where a decision should be made on the participation of Russia and Belarus in the 2025 World Cup.
Tardif made it known that the 2030 Olympics should be held in his native France and the hockey tournament should be played in Nice.
However, the IOC has not yet announced the venue of the Games and should do so later this year. However, France is a big favorite, AP reported.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to play and a goal to play in the Olympics. I grew up on the junior national team, so it would be very special to play with the guys again against the best,” said Finnish forward Sebastian Aho.
Russia’s participation in the Olympics is questionable
The men’s hockey tournament in 2026 will feature Canada, Finland, the USA, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and home country Italy. Russia’s participation is questionable.
The other three teams will fight for a place in the qualifying tournaments. Slovakia will be the organizer of the D-group tournament from August 29 to September 1, 2024. It should be played in Bratislava.
In addition to the Slovaks, the Belarusians should also theoretically present themselves at the event, certainly the Kazakhs and together with them the worst qualifier from the third round of the Olympic qualification.
Only the winner of the group will make it to the 2026 Olympics. Riga and Aalborg will host the next Olympic qualification finals.
2024-02-02 20:15:00
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