Dec. 21 (UPI) -- The NHL and its players' union reached an agreement Tuesday to not participate in the men's hockey tournament at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing because of growing COVID-19 concerns.
The league and the NHL Players Association previously negotiated Olympic participation in the 2022 and 2026 Games into the most recent collective bargaining agreement after NHL players skipped the 2018 Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.