According to the leagues rulebook, all protective equipment other than gloves, helmet and goalie pads must be worn under team uniforms. This season, players will receive a warning followed by a two minute penalty for having their jerseys tucked in. Among many others, players such as Washington Capitals star Alex Ovechkin, New Jersey Devils forward Jaromir Jagr and Tampa Bay Lightning sniper Steven Stamkos regularly have their jerseys tucked.
According to league sources, player safety is behind the decision to enforce this rule. Many players are opposed to the rule and have spoken out on the matter. Ovechkin reportedly said the rule was 'stupid' and Toronto Maple Leafs forward Joffrey Lupul took to Twitter on the issue tweeting:
By enforcing
such a rule, the league is taking away the individuality of its
players. Hockey's all time greatest player - Wayne Gretzky - made the
jersey tuck famous throughout his Hall of Fame career. It was a fashion
statement that visually set 'The Great One' apart from other players in
the NHL.
Another issue with this new rule is that during the game, players jerseys can become tucked by accident. If a player is knocked down for example, when he gets back up his jersey could have become stuck in the back of his pants. The player receives a warning for the first offense, but this situation could arise many times throughout a game. Are we going to see a game; or worse a playoffs series, decided by a 'jersey tuck' penalty? That would be a crying shame.
Many speculate that the NHL is setting the groundwork in order to sell advertisements on game jerseys; a claim the league has denied. Having a rule in place to enforce the visibility of the entire jersey will allow the league to market this option to potential advertisers. Having ads on jerseys will surely increase profits for the NHL, but where does the advertising stop. In European hockey, jerseys are covered with advertisements. Is this the direction the NHL is slowly moving in?
I certainly hope not.
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