Five stages of dealing with no NHLers in the 2018 Winter Games

The five stages of grief is not actually a thing, despite its widespread use in popular culture. Grief doesn’t follow a strict format. You grieve how you grieve. Still, the concept is a useful one for reaction to the NHL’s announcement that it will not participate in the 2018 Olympics and that it considers the matter closed.

1 Denial

Several Twitter users immediately wondered if some NHL players would flee for the Olympics anyway. Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin opened that door years ago, when he vowed to play in the 2014 Olympics in Sochi regardless of the NHL’s decisionmaking. NHL players went to those Games anyway, but Ovechkin reiterated the position in January, when he told reporters during all-star weekend that he planned to play in PyeongChang regardless. Capitals owner Ted Leonsis has said he would support Ovechkin’s decision.

2 Anger

The Internet is never slow to lash out, and there’s always plenty of anger to go around when wealthy organizations can’t agree on who gets to be more wealthy.

The issue of the NHL’s participation came down to the International Olympic Committee’s decision not to pay for ancillary expenses for NHL players, such as insurance and accommodation.

As hockey writer Sean McIndoe said on Twitter of those trying to understand the business decision made by NHL owners: “If you’re a hockey fan, you are the entire reason for this business. You don’t have to qualify your disappointment. Go ahead and be angry.”

3 Bargaining

The International Ice Hockey Federation announced recently that it needed to know the NHL’s decision by the end of April. The NHL, not wanting the issue to bleed into the playoffs, made a proactive decision to announce its plans now.

Some might wonder if it’s a final parry of gamesmanship, pushing the IOC and IIHF to come to the table with a real solution before the IIHF’s stated deadline.

4 Depression

Who can even remember the Olympics without NHL players? And yet, it was only 1994 when the tournament was last played without NHL participation.

Sweden beat Canada 3-2 in a shootout in the final in Lillehammer, Norway. Sweden also made a postage stamp out of an overhead photo of Peter Forsberg ’s shootout winner past Corey Hirsch, so it couldn’t have been that boring. Forsberg was still just 20 and had not yet made his way to the NHL.

5 Acceptance

You cheer for the crest on the front, not the nameplate on the back, right?