You would have thought visors would be made mandatory 13 years ago. That was when an eye injury robbed the NHL of one of its bright young stars.
Bryan Berard was the first-overall draft pick in 1995. In a single moment in March 2000 his career and eyesight were virtually gone. He managed to recover a bit of both, but neither would ever be the same.
We often complain that people in charge don’t make changes until something terrible happens. Berard’s injury was something terrible happening and nothing was done. Until this week.
The NHL’s competition committee has chosen to make visors mandatory for new players. Players new to the league or with fewer than 26 games played will be required to wear a visor. Or continue wearing a visor, since they have for their entire hockey career to that point. The new rule is still subject to approval from the board of governors.
Hearing the news, I can’t help but think of the injuries that would have been lessened or wouldn’t have happened at all:
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Francois Beauchemin probably thanks his lucky stars for his half-shield. He very well could have been Marc Staal before Marc Staal.
Now, some protection isn’t always enough. In 1979, Flyers goalie Bernie Parent’s career ended because of an eye injury — a stick poked through the eyehole of his mask.
Part of me wants hockey to require full face coverage — be it a cage or a clear shield. There’s no reason hockey players should have smiles like an 1850s farmhand. Broken and missing teeth aren’t tough … they’re just a 20 per cent co-pay at the dentist.
Nothing short of the 2035 Stanley Cup being played between the Boston ‘Bots and the Anaheim Androids will take injuries out of hockey. No amount of Kevlar or high-impact plastic or even wire cage will protect players from everything. Thankfully the NHL has come around on the issue of visors. Too bad it’s 13 years too late.
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