Alex Ovechkin, Washington Capitals forward and one of the greatest goal scorers in NHL history, has claimed that the ban on tinted visors in the league was due to complaints from legendary NHL goaltender Martin Brodeur. Ovechkin stated that Brodeur had complained to the league about not being able to see players’ eyes behind the tinted visors, which in turn led to the ban.
While goalies might take a peek at where a player is looking to shoot, the sport of hockey is so fast-paced that a player’s the tint of their visor would not make a significant impact on their play, the goalie isn’t just watching the eyes of a shooter as there are many no look passes and shots that happen in the NHL. Plenty of players use the snake eyes move where they look at a teammate and shoot or look at the goal and pass. Having a tinted visor almost sells the snake eyes move less. Other players in the league also could use tinted visors for various reasons, including protection from the bright lights that could cause headaches for some players.
If it was all Brodeur that got the visors banned, he robbed us of some of the best style in the league.
Ovechkin also scores a majority of his goals from a single spot on the ice, most players already know what the plan is when Ovechkin is on the ice, yet he still manages to keep scoring from his spot at the top of the circle. From a goalies perspective, there’s no time to look at his eyes when he’s ripping a one timer from the top of the circle.
The tint made no difference to Ovechkin’s game as he has gone on to become the second highest goal scorer in NHL history, still playing and chasing down Gretzky’s goal record.
Ovi also mentioned he would love to see the visors back in the league.
