OHL clamping down on mouthguards

League issues 22 misconducts in four days in an effort to get players to follow rules

The OHL’s latest rule crackdown has some bite.

Last week, the league ordered officials to issue 10-minute misconducts to players who aren’t wearing mouthguards properly — or at all — in a bid to improve player safety.

Referees clamped down by dishing out 22 misconducts over a fourday span from Thursday to Sunday.

Kitchener Rangers captain Francesco Pinelli was dinged twice — in Friday’s win over North Bay and Saturday’s loss in Guelph.

“We were warned, but I didn’t think having your mouthguard on the side of your cheek would get you a 10-minute misconduct,” said Pinelli, who has a penchant for munching on his mouthpiece. “I was kind of just chewing on it.”

Gnawing on the mouthguard is a no-no. So is leaving it out altogether.

“It’s obviously my bad, but it’s kind of a crazy call,” said Pinelli. “You just have to make sure you’re wearing your mouthguard.”

Players hitting the ice with an empty gob were seen scrambling back to the bench in a mad panic across the league this past weekend for fear of being caught.

For some players, the equipment is foreign. “All my years in the OHL I’ve never really worn a mouthguard,” said Pinelli, a fourth-year centre. “It’s kind of new.”

Not so.

Rule 9.10, which states all players “must properly wear a full coloured dentist fabricated mouthguard that covers the back molar teeth,” has been in the books for about15 years, OHL vice-president Ted Baker said.

The league is just enforcing the rule more than ever before. But why the sudden taste for it now?

“We’re not trying to do anything other than enforce a rule that is in place for the safety and well-being of the players,” said Baker. “I know that teams are frustrated. It’s not like we’re trying to catch them. We’re trying to educate them and reinforce something that is in their best interest.”

Baker added that the most recent medical data shows there is a 28 per cent reduction in concussions among hockey players who wear mouthguards. There are also fewer dental injuries — and bills.

The OHL sent a notice to all 20 teams and its officials regarding mouthguards leading up to the blitz after it had noticed several players weren’t wearing them properly.

As it stands now, players will be penalized for not wearing a mouthguard or for chewing on it. Taking a mouthguard out to talk to a referee during a stoppage in play, while on the bench or after scoring a goal to celebrate is OK.

A similar directive was issued earlier this season for slew-footing.

Over the years, the league has also focused on other, more innocent equipment violations such as not wearing a neck guard correctly or having laces hanging below sweaters. In those cases, players are sent back to the bench without punishment to fix the issue.

The mouthguard situation is different, Baker said.

“There is no surprise,” he said. “The officials are telling the players before the game, sort of a fly by, by the bench. What else do you need?”

OHL VP Ted Baker said the most recent medical data shows there’s a 28 per cent reduction in concussions among hockey players who wear mouthguards. There are also fewer dental injuries — and bills

Memorial Cup bids

Four OHL teams have expressed an interest in bidding for the 2024 Memorial Cup. They include the Saginaw Spirit, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, Niagara IceDogs and Kingston Frontenacs. Formal bids are due by Jan. 31 and the winner will be announced in March. The Frontenacs, IceDogs and Spirit have never hosted the Cup while the Greyhounds hosted and won in 1993.