{"id":414701,"date":"2025-11-30T08:40:15","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T08:40:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/414701\/"},"modified":"2025-11-30T08:40:15","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T08:40:15","slug":"sharks-senators-ditch-helmets-for-warmups-in-vegas-did-they-break-an-nhl-rule","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/414701\/","title":{"rendered":"Sharks, Senators ditch helmets for warmups in Vegas. Did they break an NHL rule?"},"content":{"rendered":"

LAS VEGAS \u2014 Looking to possibly change their luck against a division foe and finish off one of their best months in several seasons, the San Jose Sharks ditched their helmets for their pregame warmup skate ahead of Saturday night\u2019s matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights.<\/p>\n

Other than goaltenders Alex Nedeljkovic and Yaroslav Askarov, for obvious safety reasons, the Sharks all left their buckets behind as they took the ice to make for an uncommon sight at T-Mobile Arena. Players going without helmets for warmups isn\u2019t usually a team-wide event.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a team decision,\u201d Sharks forward Will Smith said after playing in his 100th career game. \u201cIt was Saturday night in Vegas, so all the guys were pretty easy (to sell on it).\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cJust to have a little bit of fun,\u201d Nedeljkovic said. \u201cIt\u2019s a fun city. Everyone wants to have a good time. Maybe play with a little bit of swagger. Everybody feels good with the hair flowing and all of that. I thought it was fun. Maybe we\u2019ll do it again, who knows?\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

It’s a no bucket zone \ud83e\udea3\u26a0\ufe0f pic.twitter.com\/q2SQruKtjC<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) November 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Then again, maybe it isn\u2019t so uncommon when visiting teams take on Vegas. On Wednesday, the Ottawa Senators also went lidless in warmups before their road game against the Golden Knights. If there was any correlation between the Senators doing it to change their luck at T-Mobile, it worked as they got a 4-3 shootout victory after losing a 3-1 first-period lead. Vegas had won six of seven against Ottawa at home and went 12-1-1 in 14 prior meetings since it entered the league.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt kind of happened at the team dinner last night,\u201d Senators center Shane Pinto said to TSN\u2019s Kenzie Lalonde after the first period on Wednesday\u2019s game. \u201cWe just decided to do it. It was pretty cool to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was just a little discussion over a team dinner last night,\u201d Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson said to Lalonde after the second period. \u201cWe\u2019ll see if it happens in the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Weren\u2019t you at the Knights game vs Ottawa on Wednesday?<\/p>\n

Sens started a new trend \ud83d\ude09 your welcome<\/p>\n

\u2014 David Perron (@DP_57) November 30, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

It isn\u2019t clear what exactly led to the Sharks\u2019 decision to let their hair flow as a collective unit. But they came into Saturday with a nine-game winless streak against Vegas dating back to their last victory, a 4-3 overtime triumph at home on March 30, 2023. The first meeting between the teams this season saw Vegas pull out an improbable 4-3 win in San Jose on misplays by Nedeljkovic that resulted in goals near the end of regulation and in overtime.<\/p>\n

But what might have been seen as an act of team bonding by the Sharks could potentially be viewed differently by the NHL. The league added a requirement during the 2023-24 season to mandate helmets in warmups. That change \u2014 which applies to anyone joining the league in 2019-20 or later \u2014 is officially part of the rulebook.<\/p>\n

Rule 9.6 states that \u201cit is mandatory for all players who entered the NHL beginning with the 2019-2020 season or later to wear their helmet during pre-game warm-up. To be clear, all players who entered the League prior to the 2019-2020 season and who are currently playing are exempt from this mandate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Athletic has reached out to the league for comment.<\/p>\n

Now, is the tradition of young players making their NHL debuts by skating without their helmets for their rookie lap exempt from the rule? Teammates around the league continue to uphold that practice, hiding the buckets of their players that are having their big moment.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, the Sharks lost 4-3 to the Golden Knights and now have a 12-11-3 record after starting the season without a victory in their first six games (0-4-2).<\/p>\n