The Flyers found themselves at the center of an odd preseason moment Thursday night, when Trevor Zegras was hit with a penalty for “improper wearing of equipment” in Philadelphia’s game against the Boston Bruins.
It happened about halfway through the second period, after the Flyers had already taken their first penalty of the night. That earlier call was a too many men penalty served by Matvei Michkov, who also scored the game’s first goal.
Zegras’ infraction was the kind you almost never see called in real time, and that was clear from the reaction on the ice. Nobody seemed to understand right away what the referees had seen or why the whistle came. The answer, it turned out, was simple enough: Zegras had his jersey tucked, and the NHL is apparently making a point of cracking down on that this season.
According to NHL insider Elliotte Friedman via his X account, the “league has indicated it will warn players if equipment -- neck guards, visors, helmets (during warmup) -- is not being properly worn. Jerseys are supposed to be untucked at the beginning of a player's shift. (If it rides up during a shift, no issue.)”
Friedman also wrote, “Procedure is a warning, followed by a two-minute penalty. So, Zegras must have been warned earlier in the game. Next violation is supposed to be a misconduct.”
If that warning did happen, it was subtle enough that it didn’t register publicly. Zegras and Travis Konecny both argued the Flyers’ case to the officials, but the call stood.
The strange sequence didn’t end there. The Flyers then had to deal with a Jett Luchanko hooking penalty, which left them shorthanded on a 5-on-3 penalty kill shortly after.
In the end, Philadelphia got through the bizarre stretch, but the night served as an early example of a rule the NHL appears determined to enforce.
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