Auston Matthews hints that the NHL is behind the times.

The National Hockey League has always had a reputation as being somewhat of a stuffy league, a league with deeply rooted traditions and a well established culture. It is something that works for many hockey fans, myself included, but that culture may not be jiving so well with some of the league's more modern players, players like Toronto Maple Leafs forward Auston Matthews.

Matthews participated in a scrimmage with his teammates on Sunday and was available to the media for questions, and one of the topics that came up was player freedom. Specifically Matthews was asked about the NHL's decision to relax the dress code during Phase 3 and Phase 4 of their return to play, something that Matthews indicated he was heavily in favor of. Now I don't want to make it sound like Matthews was attacking the NHL or anything, but he clearly used the question as an opportunity to take a little jab at the league for its stuffy ways.

"I'm really looking forward to it, honestly. It'll be a pretty cool opportunity for guys to express themselves like other leagues are able to," said Matthews as per Kristen Shilton. "At times, hockey can kind of fall behind as far as that stuff kind of goes."

Matthews has always had his own sense of style and although he definitely has had the opportunity to show it off at times, it seems obvious given his recent comments that he would like more opportunities to do so. Matthews' comments also pointed to the fact that players in other leagues have already been given some of these freedoms, and there is something to be said about giving a player an ability to showcase his own personal flare. It allows players to show off more of their personality and also helps them establish their own brands beyond the limited confines of their sport. 

I have to be honest though if I were a betting man I would be very surprised to see the NHL maintain this relaxed dress code if things eventually get back to normal after the pandemic, but I would not necessarily be apposed to letting players flaunt their style a little more.