Minnesota Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury wanted to honor his wife and her family during warmups on Native American Heritage Night, but that will not happen due to a new policy from the NHL. Fleury hoped to wear a helmet that paid tribute to his wife’s indigenous heritage, but the NHL no longer allows themed equipment to be worn in warmups.
According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, Fleury had a new mask designed by a member of the Prairie Island Indian Community. The design was a nod to his wife’s native ancestry, and it also featured a quote from Fleury’s father and the names of his children.
Unfortunately for Fleury, the NHL has barred him from wearing the helmet in warmups prior to the Wild’s game against the Colorado Avalanche on Friday night.
Allan Walsh, Fleury’s agent, posted on social media that the Wild netminder originally planned to wear the mask and pay the fine anyway, but the league took additional measures to make sure that didn’t happen.
“Marc-Andre Fleury indicated he was planning to wear the mask anyway and pay the fine,” Walsh wrote. “The NHL then threatened the Wild organization with an additional significant fine.”
This ruling comes after the NHL sent out multiple memos regarding themed nights to every team in the offseason. Under the league’s new policy, players cannot wear special jerseys or equipment in warmups.
After last year’s controversies stemming from several teams and players not participating in special Pride Night warmups, Bettman said the issue had become a “distraction from the essence of what the purposes of these nights are.”
Originally, the new rule included players using Pride Tape on their sticks during warmups and games, but the NHL reversed course on that decision when Arizona Coyotes defenseman Travis Dermott wore the tape anyway in a game against the Anaheim Ducks.
