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NHL players set for World Cup of Hockey; Olympics unclear

Pittsburgh Penguins Sidney Crosby waits to be introduced as Team Canada's representative, during a televised event to promote the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in Toronto, on Wednesday Sept. 9, 2015. (Chris Young /The Canadian Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT
Pittsburgh Penguins Sidney Crosby waits to be introduced as Team Canada's representative, during a televised event to promote the 2016 World Cup of Hockey in Toronto, on Wednesday Sept. 9, 2015. (Chris Young /The Canadian Press via AP) MANDATORY CREDIT

By Associated Press 4 min read

TORONTO (AP) – The World Cup of Hockey is coming back, and NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman insists that doesn’t necessarily mean the league will skip the 2018 Olympics.

“I don’t think one has anything to do with the other,” Bettman said in an interview with The Associated Press on Wednesday.

While Bettman didn’t sound enthused about the idea of the league’s players going to Pyeongchang, South Korea, he acknowledged being intrigued by the prospects of taking the sport to the other side of the world for the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

“Not to diminish South Korea, but in terms of sheer magnitude, it’s not the same as China,” Bettman said in the NHL’s Toronto-based office.

International Ice Hockey Federation President Rene Fasel said hockey’s best shot to grow is in Asia after establishing roots in North America and Europe.