Should Hockey Players Shave Their Playoff Beards?

Should NHL players be required to shave during the Stanley Cup playoffs?  As ridiculous as that might sound, a high-ranking NBC Sports executive thinks it's a good idea.  In fact, he's even approached the NHL and the NHL Players' Association to do just that.

NBC Sports Chairman Mark Lazarus says all that extra facial hair hurts player recognition to the point he thinks it hurts their chances of being signed to advertisement endorsements.  Lazarus acknowledges that "the players won't like this, but I wish they all would stop growing beards in the postseason.  Let's get their faces out there.  Let's talk about how young and attractive they are.  What model citizens they are."

Growing playoff beards is a tradition that began with the New York Islanders teams of the late 1970's and early 1980's.  As silly as the whole beard thing might be, you just don't mess with tradition in the NHL.

The NHL of today is hugely different from the NHL of the 1970's.  Back then most players didn't wear helmets.  Some of my fondest hockey memories are of Gil Perreault skating down the ice from end to end with his hair flowing showing the speed of the game.  Other notable players from that era were the Montreal Canadiens' Guy Lafleur and the New York Rangers Ron Duguay - both good looking guys who did loads of endorsements.

Other than the playoffs, how often do most people get to see players like the Chicago Black Hawks' Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews?  At this time of year all they'd see is a couple of guys with scruffy beards.

So maybe Lazarus has a point.  But good luck on trying to change it.  He admits that he's a TV guy and not too many people want to listen to him.

The great Islanders teams of the 1980s are credited with starting the tradition of the playoff beards. Before that, most players not only didn’t have beards, but many also played without helmets and visors covering their faces.

“You had guys like Bobby Hull, Guy Lafleur, Ron Duguay,” Lazarus said. “These guys were out there with their hair flowing. They were doing jeans commercials.”

Chicago Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane sports a scruffy beard at a press conference during the Stanley Cup Final.

Nam Y. Huh, AP

Chicago Blackhawks right wing Patrick Kane sports a scruffy beard at a press conference during the Stanley Cup Final.

Lazarus obviously isn’t advocating getting rid of helmets and visors, but he says the added element of a shaggy beard makes it even more difficult for fans to identify players. He thinks it is a detriment considering the Stanley Cup Final posts the biggest ratings of the year. The Blackhawks-Lightning series is generating strong ratings for NBC and NBCSN.

“These are the most-watched games and they’re all bearded up,” Lazarus said.

Lazarus said he has conveyed his shave requests to NHL officials; the NHL Players Association; and even players in individual discussions.

The NHL had no comment.

“But I’m just a TV guy,” Lazarus said. “They don’t want to listen to me.”

“If you ask a player to get rid of his beard, he’ll say you’re crazy. The tradition, the camaraderie of everyone having facial hair and winning the Stanley Cup, it all goes hand in hand.”

Lazarus, though, isn’t just any old “TV guy.” He is the sports head of NBC which is in the midst of a 10-year, $2 billion TV deal with the NHL. What he thinks does carry plenty of weight in the league offices.

However, Lazarus doesn’t expect the players will start using their razors during the playoffs any time soon.

“I know there are some traditions and superstitions that you can’t mess with,” Lazarus said. “But this is one tradition I could do without.”