The Long Road Ahead

Professional sport has long been dominated by machismo, and the fraternity of the NHL has been no exception. It's been difficult for those with alternative lifestyles to break into the league, but the new You Can Play Project, a joint venture between the NHL and the NHLPA, is looking to change that.

Through this partnership, the league and it's players have made great strides towards being more progressive, becoming the first of the four major North American sports leagues to partner with a LGBT advocacy group. The work that Comissioner Gary Bettman, openly gay scout for the Philadephia Flyers Patrick Burke and prominent members of the NHLPA have done to promote equality and the eradication of homophobia in professional sports has been simply ground-breaking. One example is a series of rookie seminars to inform and educate young players about LGBT issues.

However, breaking decades of stereotypes and exclusion is a tall order, and there appears to be much work still to do before the NHL sees it's first openly gay athlete. A tweet sent out by Boston Bruins forward Tyler Seguin last night shows just one of the issues that still remain.

Apparently Seguin missed the seminar. For those of you who are unfamiliar, the phrase "no homo" has been popularized by Hip-Hop culture, and entered into the mainstream. It's inserted after a statement to indicate the statement was made without an intended homosexual double-entendre. Though not universally offensive, it's a phrase that could at best be hurtful, and at worst be considered hate-speech. More than that though, it's a phrase that should never be used by a player who has entered into a partnership to break down the xenophobia associated with homosexuality in the NHL.  It was a foolish misstep by a young player who didn't understand the power of his words. To his credit Seguin realized his mistake, deleted the tweet and issued an apology shortly afterwards. But by then it was perhaps too late, the damage had been done.

I have no doubt that one day, hopefully soon, we'll see the first openly gay NHL player and that he will be a trailblazer that opens the doors for others to be honest about their lifestyle. I also have no doubt that the all-inclusive atmosphere the NHL and NHLPA is fostering with the You Can Play Project will allow him and others to play without fear or prejudice.

 However, Seguin has shown the long road that the NHL still has to travel before they get there.


Snap Shots: 

• Sadly, the existence of sexism is also still prevalent in hockey, and it raised its head again following the Chicago Blackhawks loss to the Vancouver Canucks last night. Hawks defenseman Duncan Keith was approached by a female reporter asking him about a slash he made on Daniel Sedin, prior to Sedin's goal. Keith's response was condescending, rude and seemed to question the reporter's credibility because she was a woman. Link to the audio: here. Boy, the NHL's PR department is going to be busy today.
• On to actual hockey news, the Canucks clinched their 5th straight Northwest division title in that game, with a 3-1 win over the Hawks. They outplayed them all over the ice and the win looks to have given the Canucks the confidence they need heading into the playoffs.
• Not to be outdone, the Anaheim Ducks also clinched their division last night for the first time since 2007 when they went all the way and won the Stanley Cup. The top three in the West is now set, as the Hawks, Ducks and Canucks will finish 1-2-3.
• And finally, Detroit picked up a huge 4-0 victory over Phoenix to keep pace with Columbus for the final playoff spot in the West. With four teams separated by only three points, it's going to be an intense final week. Say what you will about the shortened NHL season, it's made these playoff races amazingly fun to watch. 

Thanks all for reading, I appreciate your support. Please comment and share if you like the content here at WAAP. It was a bit of a heavy article this morning, so let's all remind ourselves why hockey is so awesome with the gif of the day! Check out this simply perfect one-timer by PK Subban: