Pride-themed stick tape. (Steve Hiscock/Saskatoon Blades)

By Steve Seto, CKOM News

Local teams push ahead with Pride events as NHL faces criticism

Mar 9, 2023 | 9:46 AM

Sport is for everyone.

That has been the mantra of almost every sports league recently, from the majors all the way down to local organizations.

Lately, however, some of the messages put out by professional hockey teams and athletes have been less clear on the issue.

On Tuesday night, the NHL’s Minnesota Wild were supposed to hit the ice in Pride-themed jerseys during the team’s warm up, but the decision was scrapped just hours before the game.

Some players did use Pride-themed stick tape, and Pride pucks were used during warm ups, but the jerseys were absent.

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Other teams in the NHL, including the New York Rangers and Islanders, have also decided not to wear Pride-themed jerseys. Philadelphia Flyers defenceman Ivan Provorov skipped warm ups during his team’s Pride night due to his religious beliefs.

The divide has created some concern from members of the Pride community, and local advocate Blake Tait said he was disheartened to hear about the Wild’s decision.

“It sends a message of disrespect,” Tait said, noting the decision might also be seen as accepting “harmful rhetoric” often shared about the community.

Tait said it’s left him wondering if the support was there in the first place when the teams decide to host Pride nights.

“It makes the gesture seem kind of hollow if they decide to scrap the jerseys last minute. Scrapping the symbolism of the community is scrapping your support,” Tait added.

But even though Pride has created some controversy at the highest level of sports, the same may not be said about what’s happening at the local level.

The Saskatoon Blades, Saskatchewan Rush and Saskatoon Rattlers have all held Pride-themed nights, with the Blades and Rush both wearing Pride jerseys.

“The Pride nights have an outpour of support,” Tait said.

“There’s an outpour of hatred and misunderstanding, but there’s also an outpour 10 times stronger of support every single time, because you can see what it means to the community.”

He said there are always messages sharing how excited and happy people are that the themed games are being put on by their local teams.

Some teams have even doubled down their support.

The Rush received some backlash after announcing a halftime performance by a Saskatoon drag artist during it’s Pride night. Just three days after the announcement, the organization showed how much they support it received and the show went ahead as planned.

Tait, who is also a drag performer, said he uses his platform for both advocacy and activism, as well as entertainment.