Wayne Gretzky Calls for NHL to Mandate Neck Guards Following Adam Johnson's Death

NHL legend Wayne Gretzky is calling on the NHL to make neck guards mandatory for all skaters following the death of former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Adam Johnson.

"... So here we are now, all these kids grow up, especially in Canada, wearing the neck guards. Why take it off? Keep the neck guards on and I'm sure the players' association and the commissioner's office, they're going to grandfather this in and eventually we're going to see kids coming into the league wearing neck guards to protect themselves," Gretzky said Wednesday on the NHL pre-game show on TNT.

Johnson, who was playing for the Nottingham Panthers of the Elite Ice Hockey League in England, died after his neck was cut by a skate blade during a collision with a Sheffield Steelers player in a game on Saturday.

Fans at Nottingham's Utilita Arena were asked to clear the stands for what was announced as a "major medical emergency." Johnson received immediate medical attention before being transported to Sheffield's Northern General Hospital, where he later died.

The Panthers said in a statement on Sunday:

"The Nottingham Panthers are truly devastated to announce that Adam Johnson has tragically passed away following a freak accident at the game in Sheffield last night. Adam, our number 47, was not only an outstanding ice hockey player, but also a great teammate and an incredible person with his whole life ahead of him. The Club will dearly miss him and will never ever forget him."

Johnson's death has sparked a larger conversation about the lack of neck guards in professional hockey.

The NHL and NHL Players' Association have already begun conversations about "additional safety measures" in the wake of Johnson's death, according to ESPN's Greg Wyshynski. The NHLPA would need to agree to make neck guards mandatory for all players.

"We've been studying, with the players' association, cut-resistant materials," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said Wednesday. "It's not something new. Ultimately it's something that, if we're going to require more, we and the players' association need to come to an understanding on.

"Unfortunately this was a freak occurrence, but it's something that we've been looking at in terms of cuts to the wrist, cuts to the leg and worse, and it's something we're going to continue to discuss and continue to study."

NHLPA executive director Marty Walsh added: "We're going to explore everything. It's in the immediate aftermath of a tragedy. I think we have to continue to have conversations on this as we move forward here. It's a change for the players, but it's also about protecting them, so I think we will have those conversations as we move forward here."

Several players in the American Hockey League, the NHL's minor league affiliate, have already been seen wearing neck guards during games. Members of the Providence Bruins wore neck guards during a game on Sunday.

Additionally, the Penguins are making neck guards mandatory for all players skating for their AHL and ECHL clubs and they are also encouraging players on their NHL roster to wear neck protection.

With conversations ongoing at the NHL level, it's unclear if any equipment changes will be made during the 2023-24 season. Perhaps it's something the league will address in more depth during the offseason.