NHL reaches agreement to send players to Olympics in Beijing

By STEPHEN WHYNO and JOHN WAWROW
AP Hockey Writers

NHL players are going back to the Olympics. The league has reached an agreement with the International Olympic Committee and International Ice Hockey Federation to participate in the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. Under the agreement, the league or players are able to withdraw if coronavirus circumstances change for the worse or there’s an outbreak during the season. If that does not happen, it will be the first Olympic men’s hockey tournament with NHL players since Sochi in 2014 after they skipped Pyeongchang in 2018. The league and players’ association agreed to Olympic participation as part of their collective bargaining agreement extension last summer pending a deal with international officials.