GANGNEUNE, South Korea (AP) — There's no Cold War intrigue, no "Miracle on Ice" in the making, no chance of relishing the best players in the world.
Men's hockey is in limbo at these Winter Olympics.
That's not a good place to be.
The NHL is sitting out the games for the first time since 1994, a shortsighted decision that left the 12 teams to cobble their rosters together from a hodgepodge of European professionals, minor leaguers and college players .
The United States opened the tournament with a dismal 3-2 loss to tiny Slovenia in a minor league-sized arena on the campus of Catholic Kwandong University, not that anyone back home is likely to care about this no-name team blowing a two-goal lead in the third period before going down in overtime.