Blackhawks would be better off if Bedard doesn’t make Olympic team for this reason

One of the main storylines for the Chicago Blackhawks this season has been the potential Olympic nod for Connor Bedard. The former first-overall pick has elbowed his way into Team Canada’s roster consideration, given his fantastic season thus far.

While making a star-studded Team Canada roster at 20 years old would be a tremendous achievement, there’s one key reason why the Blackhawks may be better off with Bedard sitting out the Olympics.

Reports have made their way into the media regarding the apparent disarray in which the Olympic ice hockey venue is currently. The start of the tournament is a couple of months away, and the arena is still unfinished.

Pending construction aside, one of the issues is the size of the rink. A piece in The Athletic from December 2 by Chris Johnston and Michael Russo first broke the news that the rink dimensions were actually smaller than the NHL-sized rink the league requested.

According to Johnston and Russo, the Olympic rink is set to be 196.85 feet by 85.3 feet. Those dimensions differ from the NHL 200 by 85 feet.

All right, so that’s no big deal. As insider Elliotte Friedman discussed in the latest edition of the 32 Thoughts Podcast, the NHLPA sees no beef with the rink being slightly shorter. In the past, smaller rink dimensions have been offset by keeping the offensive zones the same size and just shortening the neutral zone.

However, the biggest concern isn’t the size or the zones. It’s the ice surface. New concerns have emerged regarding the ice not being up to scratch. In particular, Friedman pointed out that the entire Olympic hockey tournament will be played in one arena. The inaugural date will feature five games of NHL-caliber players.

That situation means the Olympic ice sheet will be in for one heck of a pounding. The uncertain situation prompted NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly to state:

“Obviously, if the players feel like the ice is unsafe, we’re not going to play. It’s as simple as that.”

Daly made the comments earlier this week on the sidelines of the NHL Board of Governors meetings. Now, the players really want to go. Their Olympic participation was a major sticking point in the latest CBA.

But at what point does risking player safety make participating in the event worthwhile? That’s not to say that any hockey player, regardless of whether they’re NHLers or not, is expendable. But does the NHL really want to risk Connor Bedard getting hurt on shoddy ice?

Would the players themselves feel comfortable knowing they’re one bad hop away from a season-ending injury?

With that situation in mind, the Blackhawks would do well to convince Connor Bedard to sit this one out. This tournament seems rife with issues from the get-go. As Friedman underscored, there’s no plan B. So, it might be time for the Blackhawks to be selfish and think about their future superstar first.