NHL superstar believes Gary Bettman is making enormous mistake.

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HockeyFeed
Published 7 years ago
NHL superstar believes Gary Bettman is making enormous mistake.
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It's becoming more and more clear that the 2018 Olympics may be without NHL superstars, and that doesn't sit well with some.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman recently made the argument that professional players' participation in the Olympics hurts the overall product that the league can offer. Bettman argues that IOC has refused to cover insurance and travel expenses for NHL stars and potential injuries are too big a risk for the league.

Superstars such as Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid have spoken in support of players participating in the event, but none had more to say on the subject than Chicago Blackhawks' captain Jonathan Toews. He believes that it would be an enormous detriment to the face of the game should NHLers abstain from the prestigious tournament.

“I don’t think it’s just about Canadians wanting to go to the Olympics. Every guy at the NHL level wants to represent their country at that level,” Toews said

“If you ask me I don’t think you can really compare it to the world cup or the world championships, the Olympics is a whole other thing. Quite frankly, I think to turn on the Olympics next year and watch the hockey teams, the player representing their country, if it’s not the best in the world, then I don’t know, I just feel like we’re misrepresenting our sport on a pretty huge scale, and pretty huge level. A lot of the talk has been it’s just the players that are pushing for it, it’s the players that are interested in wanting to go. I think the players do want to go but I think it should be of interest to the players and the league, and I think the NHL should be there for sure.”

NHL players have participated in the Olympics since the 1998 games in Nagano, Japan. Toews himself has represented Canada at the 2010 and 2014 games where he took home the Gold Medal on both occasions.

One thing is certain, the Olympic hockey stage will be barren if the NHL decides to steer clear this time around.

You can watch all of Toews' speech here.

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Source: NHL.com