The National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA) and the National Hockey League (NHL) announced today that they have concluded an agreement with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) that confirms a break in the 2021-22 NHL Regular Season Schedule, subject to terms of the Agreement, in order to accommodate the participation of NHL Players in the upcoming 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing, China.
The agreement allows for the possibility of a later decision to withdraw in the event evolving COVID-19 conditions are deemed by the NHL/NHLPA to render participation by NHL players to be impractical or unsafe.
Four Florida Panthers players are consider strong candidates to participate. Aleksander Barkov (Finland) Jonathan Huberdeau and Aaron Ekblad (Canada) and Patric Hornavist (Sweden).