Nearly 60 percent of NHLers Wearing Visors in 2009-10

1/25/2010

Visor usage is at an all-time high in the NHL, with nearly 60 percent of the league’s players wearing visors in 2009-10 according to a new survey compiled by The Hockey News.

The survey – full details of which can be seen in the Feb. 1 edition of THN – found that 395 of 667 NHLers [59 percent] play with some form of eye protection. That’s almost a 10-percent increase over the 2007-08 season – the last time THN did a visor survey – when 318 of 640 NHLers [50 percent] wore visors.

When THN first began tracking NHL visor usage during the 1998-99 campaign, only 15 per cent of players shielded their eyes. By 2001-02, that number had increased to 28 per cent [191 players] and, by 2005-06, 38 per cent [244 players] were wearing visors.

The THN survey also found a big discrepancy in visor usage between North American and European NHLers this season. While only 52 percent [260 of 502] of North American NHLers wear a visor, about 81 percent [133 of 165] European NHLers opt for facial protection. As well, age seems to play a factor: 65 percent [299 of 460] of players aged 18-29 wear visors, while only 45 percent [94 of 207] of players aged 30-and-over put on shields. And there’s a forward-defensemen differential, too: Nearly 61 percent [266 of 438] of NHL forwards are visor-wearers compared to 54 percent [124 of 229] defensemen.

The Minnesota Wild lead the league in visor-wearing players this season, with 18. Detroit, Edmonton and Ottawa each employ 16 players with visors, while Atlanta, Dallas, Florida, Montreal, Nashville, the New York Islanders and Philadelphia each have 15.

The Boston Bruins have the fewest number of visor-wearers, with just nine. New Jersey, the New York Rangers and St. Louis have 10. The NHL average is 13 visor-wearing players per team.

Goaltenders, who wear facemasks, weren’t included in the survey, which was conducted the week of Jan. 8-14.

Courtesy: The Hockey News