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The NHLPA has been publicly silent about the NHL’s silencing of Pride Tape

Marty Walsh, as well as other NHLPA officials, have refused to comment about the NHL ban of Pride Tape.

2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft - NHL Player Inclusion Coalition Launch & Hockey Clinic
Marty Walsh stands in front of a “Player Inclusion” banner, despite the NHLPA’s utter failure to publicly address the NHL’s ban of Pride Tape.
Photo by Brian Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images

NHLPA executives have been publicly silent about the NHL’s recent ban of its own players sharing their on-ice support of the LGBTQ community through Pride Tape and other means.

It seems to be a complete failure of the players’ union to publicly stand up for their own members’ ability to showcase their support for a community that has long felt ostracized from the sport of men’s ice hockey.

No gay or bisexual athlete or coach has ever come out in the NHL. The closest? There are a couple.

Luke Prokop is currently with the ECHL’s Atlanta Gladiators, a minor-division club for the NHL’s Nashville Predators.

Brock McGillis played professional hockey and came out publicly after playing.

And that’s about it, in North America.

Sadly, the NHLPA continues to avoid public comment about the league’s inability to figure out what has been one of the worst public-relations disasters of the NHL in the last few decades.

And that’s saying a lot.