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For the eighth straight year, visor use by NHL players has risen from the previous season — and now stands at a full 50 per cent of the league — according to a new survey compiled by The Hockey News.
The survey — full details of which can be seen in the Nov. 6th edition of THN — found that 318 of 640 NHLers (not including goaltenders) currently play with some form of eye protection, a three per cent increase from last season.
When The Hockey News first began tracking visor usage during the NHL's 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.
This season, the Ottawa Senators lead the league in visor-wearing players, with 15. Buffalo and Minnesota each employ 14 players with visors, while Colorado, Florida, San Jose and Washington each have 13.
Anaheim, Boston and Pittsburgh have the fewest number of visor-wearers, with just seven apiece. The average is 10.6 visors per team.
Once again this season, a handful of NHLers who do not wear visors have suffered serious eye injuries.
New Jersey Devils defenseman Colin White may miss the entire season after practice mishap in which a puck deflected into his eye, breaking his nose and blurring his vision. As well, Tampa Bay Lightning center Chris Gratton is playing, but still suffers from blurry vision in his after his cornea was clipped by an errant stick blade in a pre-season game.
The NHL has gone on record as supporting mandatory visor usage, but says such a measure must be collectively bargained in concert with the NHL Players' Association.
