Former NHL defenseman and multi-award winning player PK Subban recently spoke about the National Hockey League controversy. The league is facing growing backlash surrounding some players and teams opting for the NHL’s “Pride Night” jerseys.
Subban, 33, who retired from the sport after 13 seasons, spoke to Reuters in late March 2023 to address the hockey league’s growing activism.
“We can’t push everybody to be an activist; we have to be very careful,” Subban told Reuters.
“I feel like people pick and choose what they want to talk about, and I don’t like it when we put the onus on athletes to be activists,” he added.
Subban’s remarks came on the same day the Vancouver Canucks hosted a drag queen show before their Pride night, during which Russian player Andrei Kuzmenko became yet another player who refused to wear a pride-themed warm-up shirt.
“They don’t have to be activists,” commented the Toronto-born Subban.
“I’m not saying it’s right or wrong to wear it [Pride] shirt; We have to be very careful how we push players to do things. … You can support the LGBTQ community without having to wear a hat, a t-shirt, or a t-shirt,” he continued.
u201cTonight’s Pride Night jersey auction is now open!nnAll proceeds will go to @YouCanPlayTeam.nnBIDDING NOW | https://t.co/fEpx5hRx46u201d
— Vancouver Canucks (@VancouverCanucks) 1680321504
The player blamed the media narrative for the lack of coverage of the good that players do in other areas of activism:
“The people who write the articles, the people who push certain narratives in the media, they need to be held accountable,” the former New Jersey player said.
“We have to be very, very careful about how we perceive a moment. … There are a lot of players around the league who have started programs. Why isn’t the media talking about it?” Subban asked.
“What frustrates me is that there are people in the media who have a responsibility to do their job in a certain way and they don’t … There are a lot of positive stories out there.”
Subban’s activism, which other media outlets have pointed out, even includes diversity initiatives in sports, putting him in a unique position to criticize the league’s choices. He has worked with the Montreal Childrens Hospital and is an ambassador for the Kraft Hockeyville program, which awards $250,000 to small communities to upgrade or build hockey programs and arenas.
As for Kuzmenko, the 27-year-old from Yakutsk, Russia, became the sixth skater to refuse to wear a Pride-themed jersey, joining James Reimer, Eric Staal, Marc Staal and fellow Russians Ilya Lyubushkin and Ivan Provorov.
The Chicago Blackhawks, Minnesota Wild, New York Islanders and New York Rangers opted not to wear themed uniforms for the 2022-2023 season.
The recent denials have prompted NHL commissioner Gary Bettman to announce that the league is reconsidering implementing “pride night” for next season.
Is it still the playoffs? ud83eudd2fu201d
— PK Subban (@PKSubban) 1680534941
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