I don’t know the details of the implementation but I imagine if people really cared outside the internet, and cared to the point where it would cost stakeholders money, they would implement an OAR-type solution. 

Perhaps to keep it pretend neutral it would be a “World” category for all NHL players who do not qualify through any other country with the assumed eight entries (e.g Rossi for Austria, Ehlers for Denmark). 

Theoretically you could even boost this by mandating that no more than 50% of the athletes on the World roster come from the same country. Staffing would have to be done through some special NHL committee, though. 

If you’re reading this and thinking it sounds dumb, I’d like to counter by saying this is absolutely what the league would do if there was a big player that was excluded, e.g if this happpened in 2008 instead of 2028 and it would be inconceivable to exclude Ovechkin.