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Pens’ Orpik can’t think of ‘valid excuse’ against wearing a visor

brooksorpikgetty

James

With Marc Staal’s frightening eye injury fresh on the minds of many, some are considering changing their stances on wearing visors.

Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Brooks Orpik might be one of them, as he told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

“I guess there really isn’t a valid excuse to not wear one anymore,” Orpik said.

As far as it interfering with his vision, the 32-year-old evoked the many star players who don’t seem too bothered by wearing one.

“Some of the guys say that they can’t see as well,” Orpik said. “Well, I look around and see Sid (Sidney Crosby), Geno (Evgeni Malkin) and (Tampa Bay star Steven) Stamkos wearing visors out there. They’re the best players in the game, and they have plenty of vision even though they use visors. There’s probably no excuse anymore.”

It remains to be seen if Orpik’s teammates will also have a change of heart. Fellow Pens blueliner Mark Eaton is on the fence, despite the pleas of his eight-year-old daughter.

“She said, ‘Daddy, you need to put a visor on,’ ” Eaton said. “That’s the only thing that might sway me. But even that — it just is such a nuisance with the fog and water. I can’t get used to it.”

There are some, like tough guy Tanner Glass, who aren’t interested in wearing one at all unless forced to.

“Not one bit,” he said. “I got my eyeball hurt last year. We know the risks. It’s something I deal with. I feel like I’m more in the game, not sitting behind the glass like a spectator.”

To each his own ... unless the league makes them mandatory, of course.