There is less than one year until the gold medal in Olympic men’s hockey will be on the line in Beijing.
Although there is no certainty of their involvement, a Hockey Canada event planned in September may bring fans hope that they could see their favourite NHL players lace up their skates during the 2022 Olympic games.
“We’re still not sure 100 per cent NHL players are going, but I think it’s a good sign anyway that Hockey Canada is looking at holding an orientation for its men’s team in September,” Chris Johnston said during Saturday’s Headlines on Hockey Night in Canada.
An orientation camp has been held ahead of previous Olympic games with NHL players. For example, Hockey Canada held a summer camp in August 2013 for NHLers ahead of the 2014 Sochi Olympics, where Team Canada went on to win gold.
Previous camps consisted of meetings and team-building activities. During the orientation camp ahead of the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, players participated in a team skate which allowed former Team Canada head coach Mike Babcock a chance to put together possible line combinations.
Part of the four-year extension of the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the NHL and NHLPA included player participation at the Olympics in 2022 and 2026. However, participation is still pending an agreement between the league, NHLPA, the International Olympic Committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation.
It would be the first time NHL players would be participating in an Olympics since 2014.
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