NHL Hockey: Ugly Third Jerseys and Banned Substances

It’s time for NHL teams to start releasing those third jerseys. This weekend, the Winnipeg Jets announced that they will be presenting a new third jersey later this month.

According to TSN, the Jets will be revealing a new third jersey on September 14th and that the new jersey will be different than the one they used during the 2016 Heritage Classic.

https://twitter.com/HeartofNHL/status/1036111604964892672?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1036111604964892672%7Ctwgr%5E373939313b636f6e74726f6c&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bardown.com%2Fincredible-winnipeg-jets-concept-jersey-incorporates-tons-of-red-1.1166578

Personally, I hope that the image above doesn’t end up being the Jets third jersey. A great third jersey would be the like the one below.

Former Golden Gophers defenseman Nate Schmidt has been suspended for the first 20 games on the 2018-19 season or violating the terms of the NHL/NHLPA Performance Enhancing Substances Program.

Nate Schmidt of the @GoldenKnights suspended 20 games. https://t.co/KZB4x0q96p

— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) September 2, 2018

You might find Schmidt’s response to his suspension puzzling. He’s not really owning up to it.

https://twitter.com/FriedgeHNIC/status/1036285938001895425

Here’s Schmidt’s full statement:

“I am extremely disappointed to learn that I have been suspended for a violation of the NHL/ NHLPA Performance Enhancing Substances Program. The fact that I’m issuing this statement is surreal to me as I have only used supplements provided by my NHL team and I have always been extremely careful about what I put into my body. Throughout my playing career, I have been tested numerous times, including twice last season, and I have never before tested positive. It was utterly shocking to be informed that I tested positive for a microscopic amount of a tainted substance. Not only did I not intentionally take a banned substance, I could not have received any performance enhancement benefit from the trace amount that inadvertently got into my system at a level that was far too small to have any effect. This low amount was consistent with environmental contamination that I could not possibly have prevented.

One of the experts in environmental contamination who testified on my behalf at the Appeal hearing described the amount of the substance found in my system – 7 billionths of a milligram/mL – as the equivalent of a pinch of salt in an Olympic-sized swimming pool. Another expert analyzed a sample of my hair and concluded there was no evidence of intentional use. The Vegas Golden Knights track players’ strength and performance metrics and my results have remained constant over the past year.

While I support having a strong Performance Enhancing Substances Program in place for our sport, it is difficult to accept this suspension. I understand that I will miss these games, but I do not agree with the suspension and I will not accept being labeled a cheater.

I have worked my whole life to become an NHL player, and I’m extremely proud to be a player in the NHL. I have never cut corners in order to achieve this goal. I am grateful for the support of the entire Golden Knights organization and I can’t put into words how disappointed I am that I will not be on the ice at the beginning of the season to help my teammates work towards another Stanley Cup run.”