from Ryan Boulding of ColoradoAvalanche,com,

Those with the eyes of a hawk, or astute attention to the gear that a player adorns while in the rink, might have noticed a running trend through two days of training camp.

Every skater on the ice, with the exception of the coaching staff, was wearing protective guards on their feet. That will be the case through camp, preseason and even the coming campaign.

“They don’t look very good but it will make us more fearless blocking shots,” said center Matt Duchene, a proponent of player safety. “Obviously, we had some key injuries to guys’ feet last year, so I understand why the coaching staff and management wanted us to wear them.”

In an effort to reduce the amount of injuries sustained, there has been a top-down decision to require the use of the safety equipment in all skating situations.

“It takes the element of a potential foot injury out of it a little bit more,” Duchene said. “There are still some areas that aren’t covered, so it’s still going to hurt when you get hit by a puck. But I get it and understand. It’s one of those things that I don’t think guys can really complain about unless it hinders their skating, and it doesn’t seem that way so far.”

continued