The Toronto Maple Leafs need to support neck guard protection.
As the NHL discusses next steps in how to potentially implement neck guard protection in the future following the tragic death of Adam Johnson of the Nottingham Panthers, the Toronto Maple Leafs should hopefully be vocal in discussions supportive of protective equipment in Hockey.
Adam Johnson’s death was a tragedy that was difficult to have been avoided based on what is currently in place. The NHL is so stranger to similar incidents, although those have come with better outcomes.
Just bringing up the name ‘Clint Malarchuk’ no doubt sends a shiver to many who know of his story playing for the Buffalo Sabres in 1989, similarly cut by a skate to the neck like Johnson, where Malarchuk luckily survived thanks to the quick actions of Buffalo’s athletic trainer, a former Vietnam War veteran.