The hockey community can now showcase the support of their favorite team in a safe manner as the NHL announced today it has licensed FOCO to manufacture a product line of branded cloth face coverings for all 31 of the league's teams. The merchandise will be sold in packs of three for $24.99 on NHLShop.com.

"The health, well-being and safety of our fans and all communities across Canada, the United States and around the world, is our number one priority," said Kim Davis, NHL's executive vice president of social impact, growth initiatives and legislative affairs. "We're committed to assisting in the effort to support the face covering guidelines from the CDC and Health Canada with the important benefit and outcome of helping food banks across the U.S. and Canada in their efforts to feed people in need during this unprecedented time."

"As a longtime licensee of the NHL, FOCO is proud to participate in the NHL's campaign to support the COVID-19 relief efforts of Feeding America and Food Bank Canada," said Michael Lewis, CEO of FOCO. "In addition to manufacturing the face coverings, FOCO will also be making contributions to support the two organizations' efforts."

The use of cloth face coverings is one of the ways to limit the community spread of the coronavirus, which also includes washing your hands often, social distancing and avoiding touching your eyes, nose and mouth.

As the vast majority of Americans lack the experience of living through a contagion, stylizing cloth face coverings may encourage more citizens to practice the safety precautions needed to help reduce the spread of the respiratory virus.

Early Days – Little to No Protective Equipment
In the early days of hockey, there were no helmets, facemasks, or any sort of protective equipment, it just wasn’t anyone’s top priority. Not surprisingly, facial lacerations, concussions, and other head injuries were pretty common. It was rare in those days to see an NHL player who wasn’t missing a few front teeth.

The first hockey player to regularly wear a helmet was George Owen when he played for the Boston Bruins from 1928-29. Back then, helmets and protective gear weren’t required to play the game. In fact, due to peer and fan pressure, many players felt ridiculed and ashamed to wear a helmet.

The 1960s
Despite the repeated injuries, lacerations, concussions, and knocked-out teeth, the majority of hockey players refused to don protective gear for the next 40 years, until an incident in the late 1960’s would change the outlook on safety in hockey.

During a Minnesota North Stars game in January of 1968, Bill Masterton, the center for the North Stars, was skating towards an open puck after a pass. Before he could maneuver out of the way, two opposing players body checked him causing him to lose his balance and fall backwards, slamming his unprotected head into the hard ice.

Modern-Day NHL Helmets
As technology has progressed, so has the technology that goes into hockey helmets, and sporting helmets of all kinds. As concussions and lingering head injuries become a growing problem for players during their careers, and even after they retire, helmets are an ever important part of the game.Tennessee Titans for NHL Face Masks

François Legault's face mask puts Canadiens back in spotlight

Premier wears mask during COVID-19 news conference, but says there will be no parade if team miraculously wins its 25th Stanley Cup this year.

When the Quebec premier held his daily COVID-19 news conference at Place des Arts, he put on a bleu-blanc-rouge mask with the Canadiens logo on it that had been made by Longueuil company Image Folie.

Legault said the mask had been sent to him by Canadiens captain Shea Weber.

When NHL commissioner Gary Bettman decided to “pause” the NHL season on March 12 because of the coronavirus, the Canadiens had a 31-31-9 record with 11 games remaining and appeared certain to miss the playoffs for the third straight season and the fourth time in five years. Their final regular-season game was slated for April 4 in Toronto against the Maple Leafs.

We Finally Know When The Montreal Canadiens Are Getting Back On The Ice

Since the Montreal Canadiens opened training camp on July 13, Habs fans have been eagerly anticipating when they can see Nos Glorieux on the ice. Today, the NHL and its Quebec broadcast partners, TVA Sports, finally announced when the Habs are going to be back on the ice. An exhibition game between longtime rivals the Toronto Maple Leafs will be aired on July 28 at 7 p.m.After a few long months, the NHL's return-to-play announcement in May sent shockwaves around the league and initiated an intense sequence of preparations.When the hub cities of Edmonton and Toronto were finally decided upon in early July, anticipation ramped up among fans and players alike.Training camps kicked off shortly after the NHL announced its hub cities and for the past week, your Habs have been hard at work, shaking off the rust and getting their games back.While not technically in the playoffs, the Habs will face the Pittsburgh Penguins in a five-game play-in series to determine whether or not they'll make the playoffs.Over the past weekend, the Habs held their first official full-team scrimmage at their Brossard practice facility.The Habs are widely considered as underdogs against the Penguins but some outlets believe they might pull off an upset.Most importantly for the NHL, the play-in series and subsequent playoffs must go off without a hitch and follow the strictest public health regulations.This means that the Habs will have a limited staff on hand and that all players will need to be housed together with careful schedules to ensure no one gets sick.Games will also be hosted in empty arenas with limited contact between players and arena staff.Reports indicate that some Habs players tested positive for COVID-19 but as it stands, the team hasn't released any further details.Habs defenseman Karl Alzner is so far the only Habs player to opt-out of participating in the play-in series against the Penguins.According to the NHL's COVID-19 report on July 6, more than 2,900 tests were conducted league-wide.23 players apparently tested positive.It'll be a tricky thing to navigate and games won't look or sound the same at all, but hey, at least hockey is finally back!