In recent years, the NHL has worked to eradicate all forms of discrimination from the sport. Ice hockey belongs to everyone, has been the core of the message. February is the annual Hockey is for Everyone month supporting diversity in the NHL.
There was a crack in the shield of the open hockey culture when the Russian defenseman of the Philadelphia Flyers Ivan Provorov refused to wear a rainbow-colored warm-up shirt for a Pride-themed game, citing his religion. Provorov is Orthodox.
Head of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch of Moscow Kirill has given its support to the country’s leadership and the war of aggression it launched last spring in Ukraine (you switch to another service). In Russia, any kind of “promotion of homosexuality” is still a crime. In this regard, the laws were even tightened at the end of the year.
The NHL, which has marketed itself as a community that opens its doors to everyone, sent a cold message out on the big stage.
– Yes, it was a shame, Janne Puhakka says to Urheilu.
Puhakka is the first ice hockey player at the SM league level to openly talk about his homosexuality. He told his own story for the first time For Helsingin Sanomat (you will switch to another service) in autumn 2019.
– It’s sad because Provorov has been playing in North America for a really long time (from the age of 13). I would have assumed that he would handle things like this with style. I’m disappointed, but I understand where that’s coming from. Values and opinions come from Russia, Puhakka continues.
– I went to look at his Instagram account and all the comment fields were closed there. I assume he knew this was the so-called wrong choice. Maybe he then thought that it is easier to face the shit storm in North America by his own choice than in Russia.
Game minutes as a reward
Head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers John Tortorella stated at the 2016 World Cup that he would bench any player who kneels during the US national anthem. The statement was joined by a star American football player Colin Kaepernick’s to the anti-racism demonstration in the NFL.
Now, however, Tortorella played Ivan Provorov more than any of his other players.
Marja Kokkonen is a doctor of psychology and a university lecturer in physical education who has studied discrimination against sexual minorities in sports and physical activity for twenty years.
– It is outrageous that the sport rewards this kind of activity, and does not intervene in it. The fact that the player gets to play more after this should be interpreted as a reward. It’s really hard for me to understand this, says Kokkonen.
– Of course, people have freedom of speech and everyone has their own values. Such teams are usually also committed to certain values, and the question arises how to act if they are not committed to them. In my opinion, it should be a pretty big deal to be able to get rid of them.
Kokkonen considers Provorov’s actions to be double moralism. In his opinion, the situation can be thought of as work-related immigration.
– Through that, he should commit to the values of that country. In Finland, mutilation or marrying with children is not right either, even though it is culturally acceptable or desirable in some places.
“The door is open or closed”
The other weekend, the New York Rangers built a Pride match event, as in recent years. The club promised to donate the amount previously collected by auctioning rainbow shirts to charity.
However, the team did not use rainbow shirts in the warm-up, even though it was announced that they would be used earlier.
– It’s easy to talk about equality, but in the real world we will see how deep the values go and whether there will be rifts. After all, this is also a really sad thing, says Puhakka.
According to Kokkonen, there are hardly any shades of gray in the discussion about whether the doors of NHL locker rooms are truly open to everyone.
– The door is open or closed. Now the message is shockingly negative, and it does not improve the reputation of hockey. In psychology, we talk about psychological safety, where everyone can feel psychologically and physically safe. Such an atmosphere does not support it or openly invite any other diversity, but gives a narrow-minded impression.
Both Kokkonen and Puhakka remind that the fights can also distress straight people in the teams.
– Unpleasant situations do not make anyone feel better. Even one case like this can affect an awful lot of people, including straight people, because someone in the close circle may be struggling with their own situation. Often these hurt many people who do not belong to the minority themselves, Kokkonen’s line.
Right direction, plenty of work
According to the NHL, everyone has the right to act based on their own values. NHL commissioner by Gary Bettman instead of a few individual cases, it would be worthwhile to focus on the big picture, which has undoubtedly gone in the right direction in recent years.
Puhakka believes that better times are ahead.
– The NHL has done quite well, but its leadership is old and the same rams have been sitting there for a long time. If the management had a more youthful touch, the message could be that you really put it on the rainbow shirt. This may partly be a generational thing. However, most people in the NHL support sexual equality and that’s a great thing.
Kokkonen keeps the lines tighter.
– According to studies, Finland has also moved forward in these matters, but that is precisely why the middle finger to minorities is particularly strong in such cases. If we go back in time, when society was more homophobic and discriminatory, the contrast was not so great. Now that’s really underlining and harsh.
Puhakka and Kokkonen are most worried about what kind of message the NHL sends to those who belong to the minority. Puhakka highlights, for example, the one booked by Nashville Luke Prokop20, who told about his orientation a year ago.
– If things are swept under the rug, someone struggling with their own situation will easily think of retreating even deeper, says Puhakka.
– Grief and shame. I feel sorry for the minority players in the teams, says Kokkonen.