Another high-profile defenseman will be wearing a shield this season.
Minnesota’s Ryan Suter, the runner-up for last year’s Norris Trophy, has decided to wear a visor this season after spending his first eight NHL seasons without one.
Suter, 28, said an incident last season -- he was hit in the helmet with a slapshot -- essentially changed his mind about wearing one.
“An inch over, I could have lost my eye,” he told the Minnesota Star-Tribune. “Just not worth it anymore. Everyone else can wear it, why can’t I?”
This season marks the first that the NHL has made visor usage mandatory for incoming players. Those who played without previously have been grandfathered in, though a number of non-wearers -- Dan Girardi and all the Staal brothers -- have since switched over.