In today’s NHL rumour rundown, we start off with Trevor Zegras and the controversy following his penalty for having his jersey tucked in. Next, the Buffalo Sabres are heading into the regular season with two injured goalies; will they look to the trade market?
Finally, Vladimir Tarasenko remains unsigned, but there could be a reunion between him and the Florida Panthers.
Zegras’ Penalty for Jersey Tuck Leads to Funny Moments
During a preseason bout between the Flyers and Boston Bruins, Zegras was given a warning, followed by a two-minute penalty for having his jersey tucked in at the start of his shifts. The officials will be enforcing this rule, and Zegras was made an example.
The rule states that a player’s jersey cannot be tucked into their pants at the start of each shift, with a warning for the first offense, a two-minute minor penalty for the second time, and the third and fourth are a misconduct and a game misconduct.
Philadelphia Flyers center Trevor Zegras reacts after scoring a goal against the Dallas Stars in overtime (Kyle Ross-Imagn Images)
Following the game, Zegras spoke to the media and confirmed he received a warning earlier in the game.
Zegras took to social media the next day, posting an Instagram story of various pictures of him as a young player with his jersey tucked in, followed by an image of Tom Brady, referencing the “tuck rule”.
To take it one step further, the Flyers hit the ice on Sept. 26 with a large number of players taking warmups with the jersey tucked in.
Time will tell if this continues to be enforced, or if players can change that habit quickly.
On 32 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman noted that there have been some other updated rules.
With neck guards, any player who has not played in the NHL regular season yet is required to wear a neck guard. If the neck guard comes off during the play, they can continue their shift, but must put it back on before their next shift.
For helmets, even for warmups, players must wear them unless they were grandfathered in. There will be exceptions made for rookies taking their first lap, and potential outdoor games where players often wear touques for warmup.
Players can start the game with a penalty if they do not follow these rules during warmup.
Sabres Down Two Goalies, What Next?
Injuries throughout the preseason are an unfortunate reality. For the Sabres, goaltender Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen left the game during their preseason finale just over three minutes into the third period. Head coach Lindy Ruff stated Luukkonen tweaked something in his lower body and was taken out as a precaution. His status for the first game of the regular season is unknown.
As for Alex Lyon, after making a routine save in the Sabres’ second-to-last preseason game, he left with obvious discomfort.
Now, with Colton Ellis as their only healthy NHL goaltender, there are some questions about what comes next.
If either goaltender is set to miss any significant time, they could look to the trade market. They have been heavily linked to Connor Hellebuyck, is it time that they up their offer? If these injuries are minor and both goalies could be back within a few games, there likely won’t be an extra push for Hellebuyck.
Tarasenko and Panthers Close to New Deal
As preseason wraps up, there are some significant names still available as free agents. Friedman noted that unsigned players Patrik Laine, Alexander Nikishin, and Tarasenko are all skating together in Florida, staying in shape to start the season.
Friedman followed that up by stating that Tarasenko and the Panthers have been eyeing each other, and that there is mutual interest in a deal.
While it is surprising that there wasn’t a professional tryout deal in place if there is this mutual interest, Tarasenko has already played with the Panthers, winning a Cup with them in 2024.
His days of being a perennial 30-goal scorer are long gone, but Tarasenko posted 23 goals and 47 points last season, and with the absence of Brad Marchand, the Panthers could look to add some more scoring to their lineup for the start of the season.
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