Two Minutes for Suiting: Winter Edition

Welcome back to Two Minutes for Suiting, a sartorial spotlight on our favorite Lightning player arrivals of the moment. Two Minutes indulges in gusto, class and guys who like to get down. It’s inspiration for your next jubilee, entertainment for the inevitably online. But more than anything, Two Minutes is just another fine excuse to talk about the Bolts for a while. And this week, we’re talking their admirable penchant for warm and fuzzy knit caps.

The Toque Line (AKA The Toboggan Five)

The formal beanie is a style icon of the NHL. And here, Lightning players Brandon Hagel, Victor Hedman, Nikita Kucherov, Mikey Eyssimont and Anthony Cirelli form what is essentially the ’96 Bulls of pairing a knit cap with a topcoat. Hagel’s frayed, burgundy number is the kind of outerwear that makes you wish you ran a jazz bar in West Village. Victor Hedman looks like he’s walking onto the set of a Guy Ritchie film. If Kuch doesn’t win the Hart Memorial this season it can only be because his wide-lapel herringbone coat already won it. Mikey Eyssimont knows that a quality forest green beanie makes any outfit pop. And Cirelli gets in on the action with the best cap colorway of the bunch. If you saw this group standing around before the game, you couldn’t possibly be sure if they were there to beat the Minnesota Wild or purchase them outright as they converse over their hot coffees. What an honor and a privilege to be brewed for such well-dressed gents.

Nick Paul’s Shoe Game Does It All

A common misunderstanding of the phrase “Nick Paul does it all” is that it only applies to his game on the ice, when in actuality it holds a closer association to his wide arsenal of dynamite dress shoes. Paul serves a nice reminder here that a weathered Chelsea boot is perfectly acceptable to rock with formal slacks and a top-tier overcoat. There’s no telling if Paul just walked into a press conference, a speakeasy or a high-end cologne commercial. Maybe he’s meeting Jack White to play a quick blues set before the game. The truth lies only where his boots take him.

Calvin de Klein  

Pop the khakis and navy blazer back into the closet for a while. Calvin de Haan’s sportscoat heat check is your masterclass in dinner party attire now. Bookmark this for next year’s holiday function slate and call it a wrap. This is the look of a man who just invented his own martini at Bern’s Steakhouse. And now he’ll gladly have a glass of your good stuff.

Heddy's Influence

Victor Hedman’s bold and textured grey ensemble is a home run—and the highlighter-shirted man watching longingly from his apartment backcony knows it. “My God, Victor,” he softly whispers gazing from afar. “The Big Steez. How does he do it?” Billie Eilish's "What Was I Made For?" begins to fade in as a single tear rolls down his cheek and onto his bright neon collar. Heddy disappears into the arena. But the power of a perfect winter suit has already done its job—inspired him to be a snappier dresser, a better human being. Wow, Victor Hedman, everyone.

All photos courtesy of Nicole Caporaso and Carlee Calfee.