Nanne was asked about the possibility of NHL players participating in the 2014 Winter Olympics in Russia. Participation means stopping the NHL season for about two weeks and the challenges that brings including having to compact the schedule and the stresses that go with it for players and teams. This year’s Olympics were played in Vancouver with a much friendlier time zone to the United States compared with Russia.
Nanne thinks NHL ownership will use the 2014 Olympics as a bargaining chip to gain possible financial concessions from the players like a lower salary cap. The players, unlike the owners, are in favor of participation, a chance to represent their countries or if not chosen, to enjoy a vacation.
“So really there are a lot of negatives to it (continuing NHL participation),” Nanne said. “The big positive to it is that it’s the best hockey to watch in the world and you’re not going to be able to see it unless you want to stay up in the middle of the night.”
Nanne would be one of the few who probably would watch at 3 a.m., or even be in attendance. His passion for hockey lives on even though he has no desire to go back into that business.
Nanne, who wore No. 23 as a player, told a visitor it’s no coincidence that his downtown Minneapolis offices are on the 23rd floor of the Fifth Street Towers. Maybe that’s an omen Nanne is right where he should be, just like the several hours he will spend this week watching his grandson and the other players in the state tournament.