NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman speaks to the media before Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final series between the San Jose Sharks and the Pittsburgh Penguins Monday, May 30, 2016, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
May 30, 2016 - 3:45 PM
PITTSBURGH - Commissioner Gary Bettman said NHL participation in the next Olympics would likely hinge on money.
In his annual state of the union address at the Stanley Cup final, Bettman said the league and NHL players association might have to reconsider their participation in the Olympics if the International Olympic Committee went ahead with its threat not to pay out-of-pocket expenses for NHL players.
"I'm pretty sure that our teams are not really interested in paying for the privilege of disrupting our season," Bettman said. "But we'll have to see what they ultimately decide to do."
IIHF president Rene Fasel recently revealed that the IOC and their president Thomas Bach aren't interested in paying costs — transportation and insurance — it has covered for the past five Olympics.
Bettman said that resolution of the expense issue would "have a significant impact on our decision."
Deputy commissioner Bill Daly said that decision wasn't expected until after the upcoming World Cup, likely in December or January.
Bettman also offered a more definitive timetable on a decision for expansion. He said the NHL's Board of Governors would meet in Las Vegas prior to the NHL awards in July with a decision on expansion, which could include Las Vegas and Quebec City.
The three possibilities, he said, were no expansion, deferred expansion or expansion to one or perhaps two teams.
"I am not going to handicap what's going to happen," Bettman said.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2016