The Weekly Links post highlights important or interesting writing from the hockey blogosphere and media. Enjoy!

• After allowing its players to participate in the Olympic Games since Nagano 1998, the NHL has decided it will not participate in 2018 at the Pyeongchang Games. [Puck Daddy]

• There has been lots of reaction to the NHL’s announcement. We’ll begin with Elliotte Friedman, who writes that, regardless of the rationale, this is “bad for hockey” [Sportsnet]. Meanwhile, Frank Seravalli states that the men’s Olympic tournament “will be marred without NHLers.” [TSN]
• Numerous NHL stars have reacted with anger and disappointment to the news. The head of the NHLPA, Donald Fehr, has been critical of the NHL’s decision, calling it “shortsighted.” [Sportsnet]
• Greg Wyshynksi places the blame with the International Olympic Committee, which refused to grant the NHL concessions, rather than the NHL and Gary Bettman [Puck Daddy], while Chris Kuc, thinking outside the box, believes that moving ice hockey to the Summer Olympics could solve the problems with the current arrangement. [Chicago Tribune]
• Kate Cimini on the far-reaching impact of the University of North Dakota’s decision to cut its women’s hockey program. The decision shocked players, staff, and new recruits, all of whom are scrambling following the news. [Sports Illustrated]
• Blake Bolden is a star player and, were she selected, could be the first black woman to play on the US Women’s National Team. However, despite her talent, she has not been invited to compete for a spot on the team ahead of the 2018 Games. [Boston Globe]
• William Douglas profiles Danelle Im, a Toronto resident who played hockey for at Ryerson University, who was recruited to play for South Korea in preparation for the 2018 Olympic tournament. [Color of Hockey]
• Cloë Keijzer of the Netherlands and Katie Henry of Great Britain stole the show after their teams’ IIHF Division IIA Women’s World Championship match. The longtime partners got engaged following the Netherlands’ 5-4 victory. [The Ice Garden]

• With the NFL’s Oakland Raiders moving to Las Vegas, the Vegas Golden Knights will no longer be the only “Big 4” game in town. What are the implications for the new NHL franchise? [The Hockey News]
• Filmmaker Jay Baruchel opens up about his childhood, his love for hockey,and his new film Goon: Last of the Enforcers (sequel to 2011’s Goon). [The Star]