Coyotes Only NHL Team to Relax Dress Code

Alex Galchenyuk with the Arizona Coyotes in 2019
Alex Galchenyuk with the Arizona Coyotes in 2019. Photo by Mike Wulf/CSM/Shutterstock (10150875aw)

With the 2021-22 NHL season set to get underway, the Arizona Coyotes will be the only one of the 32 teams to relax their game-day dress code for players.

The NHL included a strict dress code in its collective bargaining agreement, making it the only major North American men’s professional sports league to do so. The section reads as follows: “Players are required to wear jackets, ties, and dress pants to all Club games and while traveling to and from such games unless otherwise specified by the Head Coach or General Manager.”

The NHL temporarily eased such terms, allowing players to dress however they see fit during the 2020 postseason bubbles in Toronto and Edmonton. While this decision was reportedly enjoyed by many players, the NHL reverted back to its collective bargaining agreement policy in the latter stages of last season.

Alex Meruelo Jr., chief brand officer of the Arizona Coyotes, determined that his team would not follow the rest of the league in following this guideline. Meruelo consulted with former team captain Oliver Ekman-Larsson about the concept; a move that Larsson largely approved.

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