Players in the NHL have been playing in the Winter Olympics since 1998, and now the NHL is planning it's 2017-18 NHL season without the three-week break needed for the players to play for their home countries, according to THIS post from USA Today. This means the players will not be playing in South Korea during the 2018 Olympics.

I think this is a little bit ridiculous, and I think the NHL is making a big mistake.

The NHL has one job: Grow the game of hockey. Don't you think that putting the highest-profile players in the Olympics would do just that? The players in the NHL want to play for their home countries. Players in the NHL want to do two things when they grow up. Win the Stanley Cup and win a gold medal for their home country.

The NHL took one of those things away today. There are many players who will never be able to do that now, which I think is crazy for the NHL to take that away from them.

Yes, I understand that the league has a duty to put the best product on the ice, and they have the right to say no. I just think the NHL made a huge mistake in not allowing the best players to play for all the marbles.

The NHL has the power, good for them, but they made a huge mistake in taking this away from the players. I think the players might be in for a big negotiation the next time their Collective Bargaining Agreement is up.

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