Russia will likely not participate in the 2028 World Cup of Hockey if its war with Ukraine doesn't end, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told Sportsnet's Eric Engels on Wednesday.
Speaking to the media on Wednesday at the annual GM meetings, Daly and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman denied reports that they have received any formal declarations of non-participation from Finland, Sweden and Czechia should Russia be permitted to participate.
Though Daly added, "We know how they feel."
"I don’t think we’re out of sync with where the Finns and Swedes and Czechs are with respect to Russian participation," Daly told Engels after the press conference. "It’ll be available if certain things happen. And if certain things don’t happen, they're likely not to participate."
Russia has been formally banned from competition by the IIHF, hockey's international body, since 2022 in the wake of the country's invasion of Ukraine.
This ban included missing the 4 Nations Face-Off in 2025 and the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan — the first best-on-best international men's hockey competitions since 2014.
Calgary, Edmonton and Prague were named as the host cities for the 2028 World Cup of Hockey on Monday. It is scheduled to be an eight-team tournament.
