The NHL Desperately Needs To Let Their Players Back Into The Olympics Now That Jack Hughes Is The Best Hockey Player On The Planet
Icon Sportswire. Getty Images.I think we can all agree that the past two Olympics have flat out STUNK without NHL players being allowed to compete. Well, actually, I don't even know if that's the case. I can't remember if they stunk or not, because I can't remember a single thing about them. There are so many memorable moments throughout the years of Olympic hockey, and not a single memorable thing happened in 2018 or 2022. I bet you forgot, or didn't even know, that Finland won gold in 2022.
The fact of the matter here is that the NHL has been ruining Olympic hockey for the past two tournaments by not allowing their players to go over and play. With that being said…well…I can't act like I'm not at least a little pleased with the fact that Canada doesn't have any gold medals to show for it. Because if we're keeping it honest, they'd be on their 4th straight gold right now if NHL players were in Pyeongchang and Beijing.
HOWEVA
The times, they are a changin'. And if ever there were a time to make sure we send the best hockey players on the planet to the Olympics, it's while good ol' American boy Jack Hughes is the best of them all.
We're just 6 games into the season but Jack Hughes is already up to 17 points on the year. The nerds of the world would like you believe that he'd have to cool off at some point, but he's on pace right now for 200+ points on the year. And it's not like he's just getting a ton of puck luck and scoring at an alarming rate. The majority of his points have all come off of assists so far this year.
3 assists last night. 4 assists the night before. 4 goals and 13 helpers to start the season, this kid is incredible. It may have taken him a couple of seasons to get himself going, but Jack Hughes is officially a sick bastard. And imagine him being able to feed assists to Auston Matthews, who is the greatest goal scorer in American history and the fastest American-born player to light the lamp 300 times in his career.
The top 3 point scorers in the NHL right now are all American. Alex DeBrincat leads the league in goals. Jake Oettinger is making a strong case for best goalie in the league. The Americans would be absolutely loaded for 2026, and all Gary Bettman needs to do is get his dumbass out of the way. Let the boys play, and let's bring that gold home for the first time since the Miracle On Ice team. Seriously. It's getting depressing at this point that the US hasn't won gold since, and now we finally have the guys to make it happen.
Sidenote: Really hope that final defensive spot on the roster wouldn't come down to either Quinn or Luke Hughes. But if it were up to Jack, Quinn would be watching the games from the couch.