I don't like the injury risk, although it is fantastic hockey, wish they could play in preseason or after season Hack
It wouldn't be truly indicative of what nation has the best talent if they weren't allowed. This year will be so competitive, everyone is stacked. It'd be way less interesting it they weren't so ill say yes.
I agree with this pretty much across the board in all sports. Let the best athletes in the world compete for the Olympic gold. I know it may not look as cool as a Stanley Cup, but it's still a damn big deal competing on an international stage. What's the point of being the best if you can't play in the Olympics?
Other than for logistics reasons (stopping the season for two weeks, and the risk of injury) I'd be surprised that anyone would have a problem with it. Perhaps people are too young to remember when the US and Canada were basically the only countries sending amateurs to the Olympics in basketball and hockey. While it occasionally made for incredible drama (the US being cheated of basketball gold in 1972, the Miracle on Ice in 1980), most of the time it was just ridiculously unfair, and as a result of little interest to anyone. People worried that letting NBA players into the Olympics would destroy international basketball because of competitive imbalance, but of course it has had the exact opposite effect - interest around the world went way up, and international basketball is far better now than it was 20 years ago.
I understand the sentiment behind no-pros allowed but the hockey is just so much vastly superior this way than if it was all amateurs. Plus it's not like it's a two horse race or something, I would say in a given year any of Canada, US, Sweden, Russia and sometimes the Czech's (not this year though) have a chance at taking it all. Unlike women's hockey which might be better off just being a best of five or something between the Canada and US...but hopefully having it on an international stage will help grow the game for women internationally as well.
