Gary Betman questioning sending players to the olymics!!!!!!!!!!!?

Question

Look at http://www.sportsnet.ca/hockey/2007/11/28/nhl_2014_olympics_bettman/

Now that is absolutely priposterous. Cmmon Gary, he says that it is not efficient to cut the schedules 2 weeks every 4 years! He thinks the players don't want to represent their country. It is 2 weeks out of every 4 years. The NHL can't deal with that. There is not enough words in the world to explain how furious I am with this bonehead thought.

So the players can't suck it up for 2 weeks with the time change and flights?

Hasek always gets injured.

What is the olympics without professionals?

We see the amateurs play, it is called the world juniors.

Also, it may not be great for the players or NHL but it is great for the fans. Well last I knew, us fans are the people keeping this league running.

Answer 1

I'm with Bob on this. Take all the professionals out of the Olympics. Hockey included.
Ask the Sens how they felt about losing Hasek for most of the second half of a season because of an injury at the Olympics. Has to be done. The games must be for amateurs only.
The Olympics were never supposed to be for pros. It was for amateurs. Everything got screwed up when the communists started twisting the rules by putting their athletes in the armed forces and then assigning them to practice their sport for the glory of the motherland.
Amateur not pro. If all teams are on an even footing it will still be good hockey. And Canada can come up with an answer to ice a team. No way, leave the pros out. All of them including tennis and basketball and soccer too.

Nice one TBL - hits it right on the head.

Answer 2

So let me understand this and I will use a quote...

"It has an impact on the momentum of the season and the benefits we get tend to be greater when the Olympics are in North America than when they're in distant time zones."
--Gary Bettman

The NHL believes that it is too disruptive to send it's players to a different time zone to play competitive hockey, yet the Kings and Ducks went to England to play an NHL game but sending them to Turin which is only a 1 hour time difference was a major hardship?

I understand that there is a difference between a weekend series and the Olympics if for no other reason than from an intensity standpoint but if the disruption is that big of a deal, why are we talking about Slovakia or the Czech Republic next season?

Chris: You showed your age on this one. There was a time when all of the athletes involved in the Olympics were amateurs. The Miracle on Ice was a true story, not just a movie. Those were a group of college kids, the majority who had minimal NHL careers at best following the Olympics, put together for the Olympics who managed to knock off the Soviets.

Send the players, deal with the issues and that's the end of it.

Answer 3

I agree with the folks who think the pros should stay home. The most exciting moment in hockey was the 1980 Miracle. It wouldn't be the same with NHL players. Also, shutting down the league for 2 weeks can really cause some momentum swings in both directions when things resume. Most importantly, I don't want a player from my team getting a serious injury playing in the Olympics. It could have devastating consequences on an NHL team to lose a couple of key players down the stretch.

Answer 4

Chris: It's unfair. The Olympics are for amateur athletes, not pros. And if you take away the pros from Team Canada, you also take away the pros from every other team silly. I say no pros in any sport should be allowed to compete in the Olympics.

Mike: Originally, the Olympics weren't a competition between nations - they were a competition between amateur athletes from around the world. It was the job of the amateur athlete to find his way to the games at his own expense. They had to train on their own time - and they didn't get paid for it. ;) That's what made it so great. Their focus would be on honing their skill and gaining the experience needed to turn professional. Yet, over the years, the focus haas changed dramatically. Nations got tired of losing, so they began sending professional athletes to the games. As the games became more competitive, amateur athletes continuously found themselves coming up short of victory. So the Oylmpics are now just another place for the pros to showcase their talent.

I'm afraid I'm not high right now - quite the opposite actually.

*And I still think Bettman is an idiot. Even though I don't think pros should go to the Olympics, I don't agree with him. His motives are always avaricious and his actions are always retrogressive. This is no exception. I hope he sits on something pointy.

Answer 5

I can only come up with one word to describe Bettman & Co. - intelligent. The NHL players are the best in the world. The Olympics are a place for only the best. Perfect match, right? Well, apparently not in the minds of the intelligent Bettman. Cancelling two weeks of games every four seasons will result in lots of money lost in revenue. It's definitely not worth it just so the players take pride in representing their country. It's not worth it either just so fans can see their favourite NHL player play in their country's colours. See what it takes to become a successful commissioner? You have to believe you are doing this for the "best of the league". You have to ignore how much the Olympics mean to the players and fans. And you definitely have to completely ignore the opinions of the people to whom you're trying to promote the game to. We're so lucky to have such an intelligent and strong-willed commissioner in Gary Bettman.

Oh, and anyone talking about all the travel that the players have to endure, well ask any player who's played in the Olympics. I think no single player will mind taking those long trips home if it means they have a chance to go home with a gold medal.

Answer 6

The last time they did it, weren't teams playing 5 games in 7 nights to make up for the lost time and revenue? I think the grind of that schedule was taking a toll on the players involved. I do agree the games should be for amateurs, but remember that the reason for allowing the pros in was that the self-financed amateurs in mostly western countries could no longer compete with the full-time "state sponsored amateurs" of the Eastern bloc countries. As usual, a political issue in the Olympics. Btw, boxing is the only Olympic sport that doesn't allow pros. Soccer has limits on them.

Answer 7

There is no NHLPA Olympic buy in after Vancouver and Bettman is using this 'doubt' as leverage against the Russian IHF for 2014.

The winter games are in Russia in 6 years and the Russian Olympic committee BADLY wants their native NHLers to be there. The Russian Ice Hockey Federation, however, has been playing hardball with the NHL on transfer fees for contracted athletes who want to leave Russian league teams to come to the NHL.

At a standoff and without additional cards left to play, Bettman is publicly, yet discreetly, informing the Russians that his league will not be in Russia if an agreement is not reached on transfer fees and protocols for Russian hockey players.

It'll be fun to see how this 'negotiation' proceeds.

EDIT: With regards to player interest in the competition, LITY's got it right. Even half the guys named to all-star teams would rather be taking a break, never mind those honored with the task of competing in a two week tourney halfway around the world in Japan, Italy or Russia!

Answer 8

Making the Olympics for amateurs only is a very stupid idea. All hockey players that play hockey play it at some professional level. I don't want to see the Olympics be played with junior teams, I don't want to see it be played with senior league players. I want to see the best athletes from each country compete, irregardless of whether they are professional or not. I totally agree with you pmunny, the NHL MUST allow its players into the Olympics. It makes the Olympics look so much better and credible. I honestly don't understand why so many of you want the Olympics to be for amateur players only. Bob, PuckDat, green; I'm amazed at you guys! Are you high tonight? LOL, jkjk

Answer 9

The NHLPA questioned after the Torino Olympics whether they should continue participating as well. The extra travel associated with Nagano and Torino left a lot of players drained. There is a lot of pressure with the Olympics, the skill level is higher than a typical NHL game as well as the energy.

If you simply ask people like Ottawa Senator's owner Melnyk...the Olympics are a bad idea, after all, he lost his starting goaltender in the last one. In Salt Lake City, Petr Bondra was injured.

While it is great for the fans, is it really so great for the NHL?
Most of the owners and players no longer think so.


HockeyCraze99
I can tell you the names of 6 players who played for Canada in 2002 and 5 who played for Sweden who would rather not havd played in the Olympics - sure, the gold medal is nice, but if the players had their say, they would pass.

Answer 10

I am actually mixed on this one. While I love to see the Olympic competition from a viewing standpoint, I have always thought they should be reserved for amateurs. NHL should not go, NBA should not have their "dream teams" etc.
If you look at a sport like boxing, once they turn pro, they are no longer Olympic eligible, I don't like how they pick and choose, all or none and I would like to see none. Let the amateurs have their moment.
All the steroid BS of these Olympic athletes has made it lose some of it's lustre to me as well. Seems they are all blood doping and what not.