After missing out on the 2018 Games, N.H.L. players will return to the Winter Olympics in Beijing in February.
The N.H.L. and its players’ association said on Friday that a deal had been reached for a break in the 2021-22 season so that players can compete in the Olympics.
The league said that the plans could change if participation in the Games was judged to be dangerous because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The ice hockey competition at the Olympics runs Feb. 4 to 20. No N.H.L. games are scheduled between Feb. 3 and Feb. 22.
For decades, the Games were restricted to amateur players, meaning that Eastern European teams, especially the Soviet Union, dominated against young players from the West, with rare exceptions like the 1980 “Miracle on Ice” win by the United States.