\n\t\t\t\t\t\tThere will be a big visual difference between hockey at the Milan Cortina Olympics and the version played in the NHL: Every player is required to wear a neck guard.Related video above: Former NHL star, Team USA player Jeff Lazaro talks ice hockey at Milan Cortina Olympics”I haven\u2019t worn a neck guard since youth hockey,” U.S. forward Brady Tkachuk said. \u201cBut it’s good.\u201dThe sport’s governing body, the International Ice Hockey Federation, voted in December 2023 to make them mandatory at all international events in the aftermath of the death of Adam Johnson from a skate cut to the neck during a game in England that October.\u201cYou\u2019ve seen some horrible, horrible incidents around the globe,\u201d Canada’s Mark Stone said. \u201cThe game has gotten so fast, so stuff happens at a high pace … We\u2019re very fortunate in the league that we play. Our staffs are very, very prepared, which I am very, very grateful for.\u201dThe NHL and the NHL Players\u2019 Association agreed to grandfather in the use of neck guards for incoming players starting next season as part of their most recent collective bargaining agreement. It’s the same thing they did with helmet visors in 2013; just four players remain without one.Stone said he thinks neck guards will become the norm, just like visors, and before that, helmets, in a sport known for its stubbornness to equipment changes. For now, the vast majority of players have chosen not to wear neck guards voluntarily, so the Olympics will be something new.\u201cIt can be an adjustment,” U.S. captain Auston Matthews said. \u201cIt\u2019s not bad, honestly. I don\u2019t think many guys love it, but I think once you kind of get out there and you\u2019re moving around, you don\u2019t really notice it as much.\u201dThe American Hockey League, one tier under the NHL, is in its second season with mandatory neck guards. USA Hockey in 2024 implemented a mandate for players under 18.From Erik Karlsson’s Achilles tendon to Evander Kane’s wrist, there have been skate-cut injuries over the years that caused players to miss significant time. Longer ago, goaltender Clint Malarchuk survived a skate cut to the neck, as did forward Richard Zednik.\u201cYou see some of the incidents that have happened,\u201d Matthews said. “I wear the cut-proof stuff on your wrists and your ankles and feet and stuff like that … It\u2019s obviously important to be protected at all times.\u201dPlayers coming off the ice following their first or second practice at the Olympics had varying reviews of what it felt like to put a neck guard back on. Nathan MacKinnon acknowledged it made him hotter \u2014 while, like Tkachuk, maintaining it’s all good \u2014 and Canada teammate Tom Wilson proudly wore one made by Warroad Hockey, the company of fellow 2018 Washington Capitals Stanley Cup champion T.J. Oshie.\u201cA little warmer,\u201d Wilson said. “Nothing too crazy, but everyone\u2019s trying to get used to it. Everyone\u2019s in the same boat.\u201dU.S. defenseman Zach Werenski is a little more accustomed to wearing a neck guard because he did so at the world championships last spring, on the way to helping the country win the tournament for the first time since 1933. He wore a full cut-proof shirt at worlds and ditched that for a neck-only piece.\u201cThat was too hot,\u201d Werenski said. \u201cThis isn\u2019t bad at all, though. It\u2019s a little bit warmer, maybe, but it feels fine.\u201dMatthews said U.S. players have a few options to consider, including full shirts. Stone liked what he wore for Canada’s first skate, preferring a slide-on version to the Velcro he tried with the Vegas Golden Knights.\u201cI\u2019ll see if I like it,\u201d Stone said. \u201cI\u2019ll probably try without it when I get back, and if I don\u2019t notice a difference, I\u2019ll probably leave it on. But if I do notice a difference, I\u2019ll probably keep it off.\u201dCanada captain Sidney Crosby still has his old neck guard but is also auditioning other possibilities before games start for real:\u201cWe haven\u2019t worn them, so I\u2019m just trying to figure out which one feels the most comfortable. You\u2019re just trying to balance having protection and obviously what feels comfortable. That\u2019s basically it.\u201d\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\tMILAN \u2014 \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
There will be a big visual difference between hockey at the Milan Cortina Olympics and the version played in the NHL: Every player is required to wear a neck guard.<\/p>\n
Related video above: Former NHL star, Team USA player Jeff Lazaro talks ice hockey at Milan Cortina Olympics<\/p>\n
“I haven\u2019t worn a neck guard since youth hockey,” U.S. forward Brady Tkachuk said. \u201cBut it’s good.\u201d<\/p>\n
The sport’s governing body, the International Ice Hockey Federation, voted in December 2023 to make them mandatory at all international events in the aftermath of the death of Adam Johnson from a skate cut to the neck during a game in England that October.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve seen some horrible, horrible incidents around the globe,\u201d Canada’s Mark Stone said. \u201cThe game has gotten so fast, so stuff happens at a high pace … We\u2019re very fortunate in the league that we play. Our staffs are very, very prepared, which I am very, very grateful for.\u201d<\/p>\n