The start of the Beijing Olympics is getting closer and closer and less than two months before the event, the confirmation of the participation of the National Hockey League (NHL) is far from being done, which arouses many questions.
Moreover, it is a hot topic in the Bettman circuit and the hosts Louis Jean and Alexandre Picard discussed it at length during their most recent podcast “Time out”.
The uncertainty surrounding the status of players in the event of a possible COVID-19 infection is likely to perplex any athlete wishing to take part in the Games.
According to some, China could require a quarantine ranging from three to five weeks, under less than ideal conditions, for the people concerned.
Currently, it is difficult to predict exactly what the NHL and the union will choose.
“I put myself in the shoes of the players … it’s a big think about it. They missed the last Olympics [ceux de Pyeongchang, en 2018]. You have the chance to represent your country on the biggest stage in front of the whole planet.
“There aren’t a lot of players who have and will be doing it,” Picard said. A Sidney Crosby has been there before, but for a youngster like [Connor] McDavid: how do you lean to one side or the other? Of course, the three to five weeks of isolation are scary; it’s like moving to China if you contract COVID-19. ”
Longer-term consequences
Also, a hockey player who has to stay on Chinese soil much longer than expected risks significantly harming his NHL training, which is counting on him for the last weeks of the regular calendar.
This is one aspect of the question that may lead players to be cautious here.
“For example, the Florida Panthers, who are in a good position to get far in the playoffs, do they want to take the risk of losing a Jonathan Huberdeau, an Aleksander Barkov or a Sergei Bobrovsky for five to six weeks because he contracts COVID-19 at the Olympics? There is all of this to keep in mind, ”added Picard.
“I understand that this is the biggest scene, but the players, if they were given the choice between winning an Olympic gold medal and winning the Stanley Cup, I have the impression that they would choose the cup”, he then estimated.