NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman still claims to be low on confidence for a deal to be reached at Pyeongchang 2018 ©Getty Images

Doubt remains over the prospect of a deal being reached the participation of players from the National Hockey League (NHL) at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang after meetings during the ongoing World Cup of Hockey in Toronto.

International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) President René Fasel now claims the prospects of NHL players taking part are "50-50".

He is prepared to court the ice hockey and sporting community in order to raise money.

NHL officials, however, remain less optimistic.

A major part of the dispute is who will pay the transportation and insurance costs for NHL participation, something the International Olympic Committee (IOC) are now refusing to do, despite having done so ever since players from the world's largest league first appeared at Nagano 1998.

NHL officials have instead suggested they are more keen to participate at Beijing 2022 in order to promote the sport in the Chinese market.

Fasel, however, has repeatedly warned the NHL they cannot "pick and choose" their participation.

A meeting was held between Fasel, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and NHL Players Association executive director Don Fehr at the start of the World Cup of Hockey. 

It is hoped the two parties will meet again in November ahead of a January deadline for a final decision.

"I think it is [a] 50-50 chance," Fasel told Associated Press.

"Our job at the IIHF is find solution.

"I will go everywhere and anywhere to beg for the money. 

"That is my job."

NHL players have competed at the Winter Olympics since Nagano 1998, including Sochi 2014 ©Getty Images
NHL players have competed at the Winter Olympics since Nagano 1998, including Sochi 2014 ©Getty Images


The Swiss official, who has finished his term on the IOC Executive Board this year, seemed tentatively more optimistic than earlier this year, when he told insidethegames that reaching a deal would be "even more difficult" than ever before.

Bettman, however, admits the IOC position "does not make it any easier".

His deputy Bill Daly added: "Time is very short to make a decision and I'm not sure there has been a lot of progress made in the past six months, and I'm not sure there's any prospect for progress being made."

"On the basis on that, I'm more negative today than I was two weeks ago.

"When the IOC awarded the Beijing [2022] Games, it certainly created a bigger opportunity than we thought existed potentially before.

"But it is also possible that you don't go to one Olympics and you do go to the other. 

"I don't think anybody has ruled that out as a possibility."

In total, the IOC were thought to have contributed around $14 million (£10 million/€13 million) for Sochi 2014. 

Around half of this amount was on transportation.

This comes alongside around $18 million (£12.5 million/€16 million) contributed by the IIHF for Sochi.

Fasel is confident they can reduce the transportation and insurance costs for Pyeongchang 2018 and estimates the total figure will come to around $10 million (£7 million/€9 million) this time around.


Talks have taken place during the ongoing World Cup of Hockey in Toronto ©Getty Images
Talks have taken place during the ongoing World Cup of Hockey in Toronto ©Getty Images
This is not easy, due to the long journey and time difference from North America to South Korea as well as the risk of injury at a crucial point in the season.


It would be a major blow for the Olympics if players from the world's best known league were not present.

Time does remain to reach a deal, however, with an agreement reached for Sochi 2014 just seven months before the Opening Ceremony.

The World Cup of Hockey has been largely praised after its return following a 12-year absence, although Canadian coach Mike Babcock has been among those to say the atmosphere and intensity is not as good as at the Olympics.