Marty Walsh, who was hired as director of the National Hockey League (NHL) players’ association earlier this year, has specific goals in mind, one of which is a return to the World Championships.
• Also read: Quebec hope Devon Levi’s big NHL debut on Friday?
• Also read: NCAA: Here are the Canadians’ hopes to keep an eye on in the Frozen Four
The former US Secretary of Labor left President Joe Biden’s administration to head the union previously under Donald Fehr, and he intends to be proactive on many issues.
In a Thursday news conference, he said he’s had some talks about a tournament that brings together the world’s best and NHL players participating in the 2026 Olympics. He appears to have taken note of the success of World Classic baseball this month and should build on that.
“Let’s get the program going, bring the World Cup back and put together a schedule that people will be happy with,” he said. The fans love it, the players love it and it’s important for us to get there.
“In the current context, it is impossible to organize it. We are still planning a tournament, ideally for February 2025,” the league and union recalled in a press release in November. The World Cup was last held in 2016 and hopes of hosting it in 2021 faded in 2019.
Too early to choose Russia
As for the participation of a Russian formation in such an event, Walsh did not want to comment. Currently, President Vladimir Putin’s country is declared undesirable by the vast majority of sports organizations, including the International Ice Hockey Federation, which has already banned it from the 2023-2024 season.
“I believe that with what is happening in the world, things can change quickly and others can emerge. It’s a bit early to talk about who might or might not attend, he said. However, we should put the competition on paper, start the conversation to move it forward. Then we will see what comes next. Certainly there will be challenges over time.”
– Walsh also pointed out that wearing Pride jerseys has caused quite a stir lately that the league still has work to do to ensure all players feel welcome in the NHL. Some hockey players in recent weeks have refused to wear jerseys that raise awareness of diversity and inclusion during warm-up.