Lou Lamoriello comes under fire for his old-fashioned rules: fans accuse him of discrimination

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Daniel Lucente
August 22, 2024 (4:26 PM)

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GM of the NY Islanders Lou Lamoriello forces all of his players to cut their hair prior to the start of the season, and Anthony Duclair feels this could be racist.

Lou Lamoriello has strict, intriguing rules, that haven't been changed for decades. He's been receiving some major backlash recently after recent free agent signing Anthony Duclair posted an Instagram photo with a crying emoji that shows Lamoriello forced him to cut off his dreadlocks ahead of his first season with the Islanders.

The 28-year-old Anthony Duclair isn't the first player who has had to follow these interesting rules, as all players of the past under Lamoriello had to. Duclair just signed a four-year, $14 million contract with the Islanders and he will be reunited with his junior coach Patrick Roy. This photo sparked a major debate about Lou Lamoriello's policies and whether they should be enforced in today's society.

NHL broadcaster Gord Miller doesn't feel rules like these are appropriate anymore and he appeared to have gotten very offended by it.

Lou Lamoriello has rules for the team, not the individual. This isn't targeting only Anthony Duclair. This is for every single player on the team to follow. It's an attempt to bond the team together.

New Islanders coach Patrick Roy had to cut his beard when he was hired by the team last season. This goes to show that not even head coaches can escape Lou Lamoriello's rules. Matt Martin also had to chop his collarbone-length hair when he signed with the Maple Leafs a few years ago back when Lamoriello was the GM of the franchise.

Hair isn't the only thing that Lou Lamoriello has rules for, as he also doesn't like players using high numbers on his team. Many players have had to switch to lower numbers to make him happy, which he believes is another way to form team chemistry so that certain players don't feel like they're "above" the others. It would have been strange if Wayne Gretzky were playing for Lou Lamoriello. Would he have been forced to get rid of his signature 99? Now that would be such a strange sight for the eyes to see Gretzky don a lower number!

The only time that Lou Lamoriello's hair rules don't apply is in the playoffs, as he supposedly allows his players to grow out their beards as long as they'd like, as long as the team keeps winning games.

Source:
Scott Wheeler on X