Openly Gay Hockey Player Says NHL Has Taken 'A Step Back for Incln'

hockey player and gay pride

Bayne Pettger, NHL's first openly gay hockey player agent, says the league's recent cisn to ban teams om donng Pri jerseys uld alienate the queer muny and disurage their participatn and support the game.

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PROKOP REFLECTS ON YEAR SCE G OUT AS GAY

Le Prokop said feels much longer than a year sce he beme the first player unr ntract to an NHL team to e out as gay. * hockey player and gay pride *

The play-by-play broadster for Uti, the New Jersey Devils' Amerin Hockey League affiliate, publicly me out as gay October 2021, fluenced by Prokop's cisn.

NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP OUT AS GAY, A FIRST FOR THE LEAGUE

Prokop, who was drafted by the Nashville Predators last year, me out as gay wh a heartfelt statement to fans this week, an admissn he said he hoped would improve gay visibily wh the hockey muny. * hockey player and gay pride *

"I want to be the first openly gay player to play the NHL, " he said.

I’m so angered and trated that they nsistently refe to change, so they endorse a homophobic player and his ach fendg him — DeBksMethod? (@BksMethod) January 18, 2023. Canadian TV host says the @NHL should “fe the Flyers a billn dollars” and “attack” Christian player Ivan Provorov for not wearg a gay pri jersey. Natnal Hockey League prospect Le Prokop me out as gay via a heartfelt statement to fans Monday, sayg he hoped would improve gay visibily wh the hockey muny.

NHL PLAYER'S BOYTT OF TEAM'S PRI NIGHT TRIBUTE 'DISRPECTFUL' TO GAY MUNY: AGENT

Several players, some Rsian-born, and teams ced Rsian anti-gay laws and relig beliefs for choosg not to wear Pri jerseys. * hockey player and gay pride *

“I hope that sharg who I am I n help other people see that gay people are wele the hockey muny, as we work to make sure that hockey is tly for everyone, ” he wrote. Prokop hasn’t played an NHL game yet, but if he do, he’ll jo que a small club: There have only been two openly gay active players the four largt US sports leagu – Carl Nassib of the NFL’s Las Vegas Rairs, who me out last month, and Jason Colls, an NBA veteran who me out 2013 and retired the followg season.

Homophobic language is often ed among ach and players on youth sports teams.

OPENLY GAY NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP CALLS OUT LACK OF 'INCLN' AFTER PLAYERS BOYTT PRI NIGHT

* hockey player and gay pride *

This n evolve to lastg homophobic attus or e gay players to hi their sexualy om their teammat, said Erik Denison, a behavral scientist and lead rearcher on the Sport Incln Project at Monash Universy Atralia, a June terview wh CNN. "Don't say gay was a huge thg, " he said. "Jocks were never [openly] gay, you know.

"It's about havg teams and athlet who unrstand misogyny, unrstand homophobia, who unrstand discrimatn and unrstand eply. " ❤️ <a href="></a>&mdash;@FlaPanthersLast week, on the same day the San Jose Sharks' Manoba-born goaltenr Jam Reimer cled to wear a jersey durg the team's Pri Night warm up, the team posted a strg of tweets about LGBTQ rights and of the tweets said that 73 per cent of rponnts to a survey about homophobia sport "believe youth team sport is not safe for gay people. " 73% of rponnts believe youth team sport is not safe for gay people.

CALLG PRI JERSEYS A DISTRACTN IS SENDG THE WRONG MSAGE, SAYS NHL'S FIRST OPENLY-GAY AGENT

Also, 81% of gay men and 74% of lbians are pletely or partially " the closet” while playg youth sports. The donatn was ma honour of Nashville Predators prospect Le Prokop who me out 2021 and is the only openly gay player unr NHL ntract. Calgary Pneers was the first gay hockey team Calgary, formg 2015.

I'M GAY. LEAVE IVAN PROVOROV ALONE | OPN

Provorov’s polarizg cisn is remiscent of Tampa Bay Rays pchers who were labeled "bigots" for clg to wear gay pri patch durg an LGBTQ celebratn June.

He poted out that the NHL has never had a sgle openly gay player history. Canadian sports pund Sid Seixeiro lled on the NHL to fe the Flyers "$1 ln, " NHL Network senr reporter EJ Hrak suggted the Rsia-born Flyer player should go back to his homeland and jo the fight agast Ukrae if participatg Pri events is "that problematic for him, " ESPN senr NHL wrer Greg Wyshynski lled out Provorov for prevly participatg the Flyers' ary appreciatn event and a plethora of other high-profile punds have nounced him as, who is gay, feels the pivot om simply tryg to make the game more clive to force-feedg activism on athlet has a negative impact. Casey Flor, a gay Republin activist, believ attempts to embrace the LGBTQ muny are often "exclnary" bee voic of relig mori aren’t nsired.

"I'm really disappoted, as a gay man wh that, bee we all have to get along. "What the left miss is that this is the greatt untry the world and this is the greatt untry the world to be gay . We n marry, we n adopt, and we nnot be fired for beg gay, and I don't know what more they want, " Flor ntued.

GAY MALE HOCKEY PLAYERS ARE G OUT DROV, AND CHANGG THE SPORT’S CULTURE

Some players who chose not to wear the jerseys ced relig beliefs, while other Rsian-born players ced Rsian laws agast homosexualy and fay reasons for optg out. You Can Play, an anizatn found to bat homophobia sports, said is “ncerned and disappoted” by the cisn, which stated will prevent the “over 95% of players who chose to wear a Pri jersey” om dog so.

The Chigo Blackhawks barred s players om wearg the jerseys at s Pri night bee of Rsian anti-gay laws that uld have threatened s Rsian players and their fai if they wore the jersey, spe disappotment om ach Le Richardson and players. "'Wearg Pri lours shows rpect': You Can Play rponds to Provorov boytt of Flyers' tributeBayne Pettger, a Toronto-based NHLPA certified player agent who me out as gay 2020, said he was disappoted by Provorov's cisn to e his platform for "sentially a prott" that sends a msage to hockey fans and his teammat who did take part the warmup. "I found selfish and ankly disrpectful towards the gay muny.

"He says the NHL has ma great stris when to makg the sport more clive — the league's Hockey is for Everyone iative enurag teams to celebrate the diversy that exists their rpective markets — but Provorov's actns signal somethg prospect Le Prokop announc he's gay"I get asked all the time, 'When is an NHL player gog to e out? 20-year-old Prokop, the first openly gay player wh a ntract unr the NHL, penned a thoughtful msage about players the league who have opposed wearg pri jerseys or g rabow stick tape durg their teams' annual pri events. Prokop me out as gay 2021, one year after beg selected by the Nashville team the 2020 NHL Draft.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* HOCKEY PLAYER AND GAY PRIDE

Hockey Player Com Out as Gay Ahead of Pri-Themed Match .

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