Ed Mulholland-Imagn ImagesJames NicholsTue, December 2, 2025 at 12:41 PM UTC·2 min readIt’s confirmed that the New Jersey Devils did, in fact, break a rule on Monday when they took the ice for warmups against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Honoring Devils defenseman, Brenden Dillon, for his 1,000th NHL game, New Jersey sported No.5 jersey’s with “1K” on the sleeves, as well as hats that represented the defenseman’s career achievement.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHowever, missing from all the players’ heads helmets, which violates Rule 9.6 in the NHLs official rule book.
The rule states, “it 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.”
“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.”
Well, the NHL is, in fact, taking action against the Devils.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNJ Advance Media is first to report that the NHL is stepping in, via comment from NHL Deputy Commissioner, Bill Daly.
Daly states via email, “We intend to send a memo to the Clubs reminding them as to applicable rules mandating helmet use in warm-up.”
New Jersey Hockey Now can confirm NJ Advance Media’s report.
The Devils had five players on the ice Monday night who were all in violation of the rule, as they entered the NHL after the 2019-20 season. Such names include Cody Glass, Dawson Mercer, Paul Cotter, Simon Nemec, and Luke Hughes.
The Devils are one of a handful of teams who have violated rule 9.6 labeled “helmets.” The NHL is taking similar action against the San Jose Sharks, Vegas Golden Knights, and Ottawa Senators.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNew Jersey has not yet directly heard from the NHL on the action they plan to take for the violation, which is basically a slap on the wrist.
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