DENVER _ For several months, Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews said he wanted the NHL to let its players participate in the 2018 Winter Olympics.
So Monday's announcement that the NHL would not be taking part in the Games came as a body blow to Toews and some of his Hawks teammates, and Toews wasn't afraid to vent his frustration prior to the Hawks' game Tuesday against the Avalanche.
The NHL has said it sees no benefit to stopping its season for the Olympics, but at times over the last year Commissioner Gary Bettman tried to renegotiate opt-out terms of the collective bargaining agreement with the Players Association in exchange for participation, a tactic that didn't sit well with Toews, who has won two gold medals with Canada.
"I guess you have to respect your employers, your owner's decision. But ... it just seems unfortunate that when the players voice it's something that they think is beneficial not only for them, but for the league and for our game as a whole _ it automatically turns into a negotiation," Toews said. "It just seems like it comes down to what can they get out of us when the next CBA negotiation rolls around. It's not about the long-term goals of our game and growing it and the bigger picture."
Toews, however, said he would not defy the league as Capitals winger Alexander Ovechkin said he would. The same goes for winger Patrick Kane, one of the faces of USA Hockey.
"You'd rather be there but I think you understand where the NHL is coming from," Kane said. "We'll see what happens from now until then. ... There's a lot of time for something to happen, so we'll see. I think I would love to play for U.S. Hockey again in the Olympics and be part of that again, but if it's not in the cards, I don't think it's something where come next year, I'm going to leave my team or anything like that."
But defenseman Duncan Keith, who won gold with Canada in 2010 and 2014, was not as definitive in saying he would obey. He said some players might have to make a hard decision next year whether they wanted to participate or not, and wasn't sure whether he would stay or go.
"You want to be respectful to the team and your owner who pays you the money, but also you want to be patriotic every chance you can and try to play for your country," Keith said. "That's a tough decision. I think that'll be based on the individual and the team."
Toews disagreed with the league's contention that Olympic participation does nothing to grow the sport, and said the excitement and viewership (an average of 27.6 million in the U.S.) for the 2010 gold medal game in Vancouver between the U.S. and Canada was a special moment for hockey.
Toews has also participated in the league-sanctioned World Cup of Hockey this September but said the two events aren't on the same level. Nothing matches the Olympics, he said, and not going represents a missed opportunity to keep hockey relevant.
"There was no comparison really, as far as energy and excitement to not only be part of a hockey team but being part of a larger group of athletes representing your country," Toews said. "There's a lot that goes into it that makes it special.
"I disagree with the short-sightedness of this whole thing, too. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem that players can get that cooperation from the league. Tough bounce."
