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The NHL and the NHL Players' Association announced an agreement on Friday with the International Ice Hockey Federation confirming a pause in the regular season to allow players to represent their respective countries in Beijing.
From February 3 through February 22, the season will break for the NHL All-Star Weekend at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and the Olympic men's hockey tournament.
"Representing their country in the Olympics is important to the players, even in these uncertain times," said NHLPA general counsel, Don Zavelo. "The players look forward to pulling on their nation's hockey sweater at the upcoming 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing as they compete for the gold medal."
This marks the first time since 2014 in Sochi that NHL players will participate in the Olympics. They weren't on-site in 2018 in PyeongChang.
The tournament will include 12 countries seeded into three groups, Canada, Russian Olympic Committee, Finland, Sweden, Czech Republic, United States, Germany, Switzerland, China, Slovakia, Latvia and Denmark.
The agreement also allows for the possibility of a later decision to withdraw in the event evolving COVID-19 conditions are deemed by the NHL/NHLPA to render participation by NHL players to be impractical or unsafe.
Goaltender Carey Price led Canada to Olympic gold in Sochi by posting a perfect 5-0-0 record, along with a sparkling 0.59 goals-against average and a .972 save percentage. The 34-year-old Anahim Lake, BC native was named the tournament's top netminder.
For his part, captain Shea Weber claimed gold alongside Price in 2014, and won gold in 2010 in Vancouver as well.
