To go or not to go - that is the question the NHL faces with regard to the 2018 Olympics in South Korea.

I have to be honest - I am torn. On one hand, I personally want to see the best players in the NHL play in the Winter Games. On the other, I was in the Olympics the last year that amateurs went in 1994 in Lillehammer, Norway. So it holds a special place in my heart.

I can definitely understand NHL owners’ reluctance to send players to South Korea. The jet lag, injuries, and wear and tear on the bodies of their best players will be a major impediment to winning a Stanley Cup.

I saw it firsthand while coaching with the St. Louis Blues in 2014. We sent nine players to the Olympics in Sochi, and most, if not all, came back completely fatigued; if they weren’t already injured, they were hurt as soon as they returned to NHL action. We were subsequently knocked out of the first round of the playoffs by the Chicago Blackhawks.

I won’t even get into the money side of all this; it’s complicated and expensive. Insurance and liability are a whole other element.

My argument is more personal than professional: It was possibly the best year of hockey of my life. Picture traveling the world and playing hockey with your best friends. The majority of you are single, and you’re all between the ages of 20-24. You play hockey in countries like Germany, Italy, France, Switzerland, Austria, Russia, Sweden, and Norway, then cap it off with a trip to the Olympics. It was the ultimate hockey player experience.

(Photo courtesy: Getty Images)

If not for those Games, some of my friends might never have played in the NHL. I think of Todd Hlushko, whose career was on its last legs after he’d been released by the Capitals. He led our team in goals at the Olympics, and it gave him a showcase. He went on to play for the Philadelphia Flyers. I also think of Brian Savage, drafted 171st overall in 1991, a long shot. He went on to play 674 games in the NHL.

I have so many unforgettable memories of playing for the Canadian national team. Here’s one: During the season, the team had a really early flight out of Moscow. We had to get our equipment from the arena after competing in the Izvestia tournament.

Two Russian cops were guarding the arena in their police car. They were both passed out - maybe drunk, maybe hungover, could have been anything, I don’t know. We packed up our equipment from the arena, loaded the bus, and they never budged. Not once. We probably should have checked for a pulse.

Despite my amazing experience, part of me wants to see Connor McDavid and Sidney Crosby on the same line, playing against Auston Matthews, or Patrik Laine, or Vladimir Tarasenko.

I believe we need NHL players in the Olympics. I am personally grateful for the NHL. It’s the reason I became a goalie and fulfilled a lot of my childhood dreams. The NHL needs to go because somewhere out there, a kid like me is waiting to be inspired by the best in the world.

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Reinforcements are on the way.

Losers of three straight and 11 of 14 games in the month of March, the Minnesota Wild recalled forward Joel Eriksson Ek from Sweden, the club announced Tuesday evening.

Eriksson Ek, who was drafted 20th overall in 2015, spent the majority of the season playing for Swedish Elite League club Farjestad after a nine-game stint with the Wild to kick off 2016-17.

By recalling the forward, the Wild will burn the first year of his entry-level deal once he appears in his 10th game.

Eriksson Ek recorded two goals and three assists during his time with the Wild, and went on to contribute eight goals and eight assists in 26 games in Sweden, followed by three goals and three assists in seven playoff games. He was also one of the better players at the 2017 World Junior Championship.

Despite their recent swoon, the Wild will be in the playoffs, likely with a little spark in their back pocket.

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Vegas Golden Knights owner Bill Foley was quick to formally welcome the Oakland Raiders to Nevada, but he qualified his feelings on the NFL club's relocation in 2019.

Foley had expected the NBA would be the second league to move in, perhaps sharing the T-Mobile Arena, in lieu of spending $750 million in public money to help finance a football stadium, he told "Vegas Hockey Hotline" ​on Monday.

"There are a lot better ways to spend $750 million than on bringing the Oakland Raiders to Las Vegas," Foley declared. "Spend it on police, firemen, and teachers, and have all three be the best in the country. But I guess we're going to make a $750-million investment in a stadium."

The Raiders' new stadium will cost a total of $1.9 billion.

Foley conceded there are positives to having the NFL in the city, especially in terms of bringing opposing fans into hotels and casinos, and further proving Las Vegas is a legitimate sports town.

While he's not concerned about splitting the market with the NFL - saying it's like comparing apples to New York steak - he admitted it's not a situation he was yearning for.

"If I had had complete control of the situation, I would not have opted to have the Raiders come here, but I had no control and they're coming, so welcome," he said. "Bring it on."

Foley reiterated that his goals for the hockey club remain the same regardless of the potential pressure involved in competing with the Raiders: playoffs in three years and a Stanley Cup in six years.

"We're going to win, and we're going to win fairly early," Foley said. "You can take it to the bank."

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Through the remainder of the regular season, we'll take a look at how the night's action impacts the playoff race, highlighting which teams' postseason odds went up or down significantly.

While the eight Western Conference playoff teams are pretty much set and now jockeying for position, it looks like the Eastern Conference will contain more drama than the recent "Gilmore Girls" revival.

Long thought to be a write-off, the Tampa Bay Lightning may have saved their season with a massive come-from-behind overtime win against the Blackhawks on Monday.

The Lightning now sit one point back of the Boston Bruins and two points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs, both of whom saw their chances improve thanks to a New York Islanders loss.

Meanwhile, the Carolina Hurricanes' slim chances took a hit after they only picked up a single point in an overtime loss to Detroit.

Here's where they all stand after Monday's action.

To see percentages for the entire NHL, visit Sports Club Stats.

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Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Eddie Lack took to Twitter late Monday night to share some good news after a scary scene on the ice hours earlier.

Lack was stretchered off the ice after a collision with Detroit's Andreas Athanasiou and was taken to hospital for tests.

Fortunately, it wasn't a long stay.

The incident occurred in overtime on a play in which Athanasiou scored the game-winning goal.

Lack's timetable to return to the ice is not yet known.

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For the second straight game, the Chicago Blackhawks lost in a rather dramatic way.

Following Saturday's outing that saw them demolished 7-0 by the Florida Panthers, the Blackhawks continued their Florida road trip against the Tampa Bay Lightning, dropping a 5-4 overtime decision after taking a 4-1 lead.

Related: Gourde caps off 3-goal Lightning comeback with OT beauty

It's been a rare couple of games for the Blackhawks who, prior to Saturday, had gone 6-0-1 in their past seven games, but Niklas Hjalmarsson admits a slump is better off happening now than in a few weeks.

"It's getting close to the end here and we're getting a little bit too comfortable maybe," Hjalmarsson said, according to Chris Pine of the Chicago Tribune. "As soon as you do that, you're going to lose games … At the same time I'm glad that we were playing like this before the playoffs so we can make some adjustments."

Luckily for the Blackhawks, their postseason spot is already guaranteed, meaning the remaining six games could be looked at as playoff tuneups. And according to Hjalmarsson, what the team might need to work on most down the stretch is staying focused.

"Eighty-two games is a long season. It's a mental grind more than anything," Hjalmarsson said. "As soon as you're not there 100 percent, it's going to show in the scoring. I thought we played decent today, but 10 minutes during the game we just let them do whatever they wanted. That was enough to lose the game."

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Yanni Gourde put an end to the madness between the Chicago Blackhawks and Tampa Bay Lightning on Monday night.

The 25-year-old beat Scott Darling with just 36 seconds remaining in overtime to help the Lightning complete a three-goal comeback victory.

After falling behind 4-1, the Lightning rallied, thanks in large part to a pair of goals by Jonathan Drouin and the aforementioned winner by Gourde that served as just his second goal of the season.

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