NHL will not send players to Beijing Winter Olympics due to Covid-19

• NHL decides against competing in Beijing due to Covid-19
• Postponed games will force rescheduling in Olympic window
• NHL to shut down season early for holidays amid Covid spike

The National Hockey League will not send its players to compete in the men's ice hockey tournament at the Beijing Olympics due to Covid-19 concerns as the highly transmissible Omicron variant of the coronavirus spreads globally, ESPN reported on Tuesday.

The NHL agreed last September to pause its regular season so the world's top players could compete in Beijing with the caveat it could withdraw if Covid-19 disruptions forced games to be rescheduled during the Olympics window.