Rigmarole - A Foot In The Crease - Episode 5.25

www.afootinthecrease.com

A sensational Olympic hockey tournament really put on display the best that the game has to offer. Games were fast paced, highly skilled and featured an intensity level not commonly seen in the NHL outside of the post season. That’s not a surprise considering the tournament includes the world’s best players with gold medals resting on the line.

Really, to showcase the game on the world stage in front of millions upon millions of viewers, no better platform exists.

However once again, NHL participation for the next winter Olympics in 2014 is in jeopardy. But why? Things couldn’t have worked out better with a dream gold medal final between Canada and the US. The gold medal final though, according to NHL commissioner Gary Bettman back in 2002 when the outcome was the same, has as much bearing on whether the NHL returns to the Olympics as the pen that he was holding does.

At the end of the day, the NHL is using Olympic participation as a bargaining chip for when the CBA reopens in 2011. Alex Ovechkin though has already gone on the record as saying he will play for Russia with or without NHL permission.

So what does the league do in a situation like that? Punish and attempt to disgrace arguably their most marketable player? Suspend him? I’m sure the ticket holders in Washington would be so pleased for the NHL to extend his self decided absence from the Capitals line up even longer.

While the NHL might believe it holds the Olympics as a bargaining chip, the NHLPA has some bargaining power too. If we agree to give up the Olympics, how about the league sweetens the financial pot a bit? Raise the salary cap or even get rid of it all together.

Once all is boiled down, the simplest solution will be, let the players go to the Olympics. It will happen, count on it! But hey, all that was just rigamarole.