'Time rolls on': NHLers talk neck protection after AHL mandate

Jack Hughes still wants to have the choice. 

The New Jersey Devils star goes to battle every night looking for any potential edge in a sport that, at the highest level, has razor-thin margins. 

Feeling good on the ice in an NHL game is a big part of the equation. 

With that in mind, how much cut-resistant gear, which moved to the forefront of hockey's safety conversation last season after the death of a player from a skate cut to the neck during a game in England, does Hughes wear under his equipment? 

"Not nearly enough," he replied. "Gotta be comfortable." 

That decision, however, could one day be taken out of players' hands. 

The American Hockey League, the NHL's top development circuit, has made cut-resistant neck protection mandatory for anyone taking the ice beginning this season. 

That followed the decision ahead of the 2023-24 AHL campaign to mandate cut-resistant socks and wrist sleeves. 

The NHL has no such rule — it would have to be collectively bargained with the NHL Players' Association — but deputy commissioner Bill Daly hopes a time comes where that's the case. 

"I think we're moving in that direction," said Daly, who added an overwhelming majority of players currently wear cut-resistant socks. 

The league and union strongly emphasized wrist sleeves ahead of last season, according to Daly, before neck protection became a focus following the death of Elite Ice Hockey League player Adam Johnson, an American who previously had brief stints with the Pittsburgh Penguins, at age 29 in October 2023. 

Neck guards were already mandatory in two of Canada's three top junior leagues — the Ontario Hockey League and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League — prior to the incident in England. The Western Hockey League followed suit last November, while the International Ice Hockey Federation subsequently made neck protection mandatory at its tournaments. 

A handful of NHL players took it upon themselves to wear neck guards last season after Johnson's death, including then-Toronto Maple Leafs forward Tyler Bertuzzi. 

Daly, however, said he understands the pushback. 

"They're the highest level of the game," he said at last month's NHL/NHLPA player media tour in Las Vegas. "(They) don't want to be told necessarily what to do and what not to do, particularly when it could affect performance on some basis. They're not going to jump into allowing us to make it mandatory. 

"(The NHLPA is) working constructively with us to at least make the players aware of the benefits of protecting themselves better than they have in the past." 

Daly said the league proposed a rule for cut-resistant gear. 

"But we clearly understand where the union's coming from," he continued. "And some of the difficulties they have with their constituents. It's (a) process." 

A process that could eventually mirror the introduction of other safeguards. 

Players entering the league ahead of the 1979-1980 season were mandated to wear helmets. Visors, meanwhile, became compulsory in time for the 2013-14 campaign for anyone with fewer than 25 games of NHL experience. 

The league has seen some scary moments involving skate blades. Buffalo Sabres goaltender Clint Malarchuk survived a cut to his neck in 1989. More recently, Edmonton Oilers winger Evander Kane suffered a deep cut on his wrist in November 2022. 

Montreal Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki got a look at the latest models of cut-resistant equipment at the recent player media tour. 

"Definitely a bigger conversation," he said. "But I like to have the freedom of what I'm wearing. We're all professionals and old enough to make our own decisions." 

Suzuki did point out he wore neck guards in minor hockey and the OHL: "Didn't really affect anything." 

So why take it off? 

"I don't know," he replied. "I was just following what everyone else has done." 

Vegas Golden Knights centre Jack Eichel said players are set in their ways. 

"Guys are pretty committed to whatever they're using," he said. "You see guys … they've had the same shoulder pads or shin pads for 15 years." 

Washington Capitals defenceman John Carlson, poised for his 16th NHL season, sees a day coming when neck protection is mandatory. 

"Everything seems burdensome when it's a change," he said. "But its intention is in the correct place. Time rolls on like anything else … just becomes normal." 

Philadelphia Flyers winger Owen Tippett suffered a skate cut to his ankle when he was younger. He doesn't think NHLers would put up much fuss on neck guards. 

"Guys have just gotten used to not wearing it, myself included," he said. "They know why and the reasoning behind (a potential mandate). It sucks it had to happen the way it did for it to shed some light." 

Hughes, however, believes the choice should remain with individual players. 

"We're the ones in our gear every day," he said. "We're the ones that want to keep ourselves safe … last year was really unfortunate. 

"But I think that's up to the guys."