Kukla's Korner Hockey
Mandatory Visors?
by Paul on 03/06/13 at 11:09 AM ET
Comments (5)
from Larry Brooks of the New York Post,
In The department of player safety, the NHL Players’ Association has much to answer for, as does the NHL.
For last night at the Garden, when a Kimmo Timonen drive rocketed off Jakub Voracek’s blade up into the right eye of Marc Staal at 5:45 of the third period, it served as yet another reminder and another example of the insanity of not making visors a mandatory piece of equipment in the NHL.
This “personal choice” position on the issue staked out by the PA that is no more and no less a consensus of its rank and file is from another era.
Can there be anything more precious than one’s eyes; anything more critical to protect than one’s vision?
Filed in: NHL Teams, New York Rangers, NHL Talk, NHLPA, | KK Hockey | Permalink
Tags: marc+staal
Comments
Nobody has to fall on his sword. Visors aren’t prohibited, after all.
This just shows exactly where the priorities are in the league. The NHL is willing to shut down the league to haggle over percentage points of revenue, but uninterested in going to the mat when it comes to real issues of player safety. If the NHL attempted to mandate this outside the collective bargaining process, the NHLPA would shoot it down immediately, which is a reflection of their failure to look after the interests of their membership.
Posted by Savage Henry on 03/06/13 at 11:29 AM ET
It is a matter of course that youth does not fear extreme harm could befall them. It is not until one loses their vision or has a career ending concussion that they wish they might had prevented it with an inexpensive visor. There are numerous players who could vouch for that. Malhotra and Pronger immediately come to mind. I guess it’s asking too much for the NHL to have that kind of proactive foresight for the players’ safety. You would think they would make it mandatory based on sheer dollar amounts alone.
Posted by Frosty on 03/06/13 at 03:11 PM ET
I guess I would agree that they should be mandatory. That being said, if the PA and players refuse to wear a visor the teams should be fully indemnified for the loss of the player and their capacity. Teams make huge, no cancel contracts with these players and they should be insured against dumb decisions by players to not use appropriate protection.
Posted by timbits on 03/07/13 at 12:07 AM ET
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It will take a player going legit blind for the league and PA to wake up. I feel sorry for the player that has to fall on that sword. As we’ve seen with just about everything, they’re reactive, not proactive.
Posted by Chris M on 03/06/13 at 11:16 AM ET