No NHLers at Olympics could benefit host squad

It's looking more and more like the world's best hockey players won't be suiting up at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.

Last week's announcement by National Hockey League commissioner Gary Bettman that the NHL has not changed its position on participating in the Games only exacerbated a growing rift with the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

After boycotting the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, the NHL remains adamant about having the IOC cover the costs of putting a billion dollars worth of professional talent on display in Beijing, such as travel and accommodation expenses and insurance, which the IOC previously took care of - including for the 2014 Games in Sochi.