Imagine a Penguins-Capitals marquee matchup without any marquee players.
No Crosby. No Ovechkin. Not even Malkin, Backstrom, Holtby, Oshie or Kuznetsov.
Would you still want to watch a game where Nick Bonino and Marcus Johansson were the top-line centres?
It could happen.
The NHL’s Gary Bettman and the NHLPA’s Don Fehr met with the IIHF’s Rene Fasel and IOC’s Thomas Bach in New York on Friday to discuss whether or not to participate in the 2018 Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea. According to reports, it was deemed a courtesy meeting. No negotiations occurred.
Still, it was an important first step towards resolution.