Canada has taken the first steps toward trying to win a third consecutive Olympic gold medal, only this time without NHL players.

Hockey Canada on Tuesday named Sean Burke as its general manager and Willie Desjardins as its coach for the 2018 Olympics, the first that will be played without NHL players since 1994.

The United States and Canada face arguably the toughest challenge in preparing for Pyeongchang with most of their top off-ice candidates working in North America, where leagues aren’t taking an Olympic break.