Well said Sean. I sometimes get frustrated with what feels like empty gestures from institutions like the NHL towards lgbtq. Like, wearing a piece of fabric for 18 minutes doesn't really move the needle, you know? But choosing to stop doing it moves the needle in the wrong direction. And I'm glad you bring up Noche Mexicana in Dallas. To me, American born white guy, it felt like pandering in a bad way. But to one of Mexican friends, it meant the world. So screw what I think. If it reached him that's what matters. And if having the whole team wear rainbow jerseys makes one gay person feel a little more welcome in the NHL, then the good outweighs whatever distraction it may cause. And let's be honest: when Bettman says distraction, he means he's dissatisfied with the level of profit Pride nights have yielded
This is the ramification of having Bettman (an old, straight, white, male attorney) running the league. He is far more concerned about the possibility of negative PR than the positive impact warm up jerseys have. The NHL already has a PR problem of just being boring. Unique warm up jerseys were a great way to inject some interest and soul into the game.
The NHL absolutely needs to appeal to a broader spectrum of viewers/fans. This is not a move forward.
Thanks for writing this, Sean. Totally agree it can be a tricky landscape to write about but also agree with your thoughts on it. I wish it could be as simple as "if you don't want to personally endorse it, or it goes against your beliefs, sit out". Too many finger pointings and condemnations instead of opening the arms and loving people and the sport. Any idea if the idea is to completely shutdown "X night" or just remove the jerseys?
Hopefully this isn't something they shut down forever but revisit when they've had time to talk to players and get a better understanding.
Thanks again for writing and sharing your thoughts!
Agree 100%. The NHL continues to step all over itself time and time again regarding different topics. Pride recognition, sexual abuse allegations, etc., etc. Either their leadership is woefully ill-informed or they need a new PR firm that can guide them appropriately. Maybe both? The league just continues to disappoint. I may be an old, white guy myself, but the league has way too many old, white guys running things and making embarrassingly bad decisions.
Well written - your point hidden in the end of the article - "But that shouldn’t stop the league from working to be more inclusive publicly, it also shouldn’t stop the league from reaching out to new fans." This is a reaction to the financial losses that major corporations are having based on their advertising. This is an incredible game, yet the driver is the almighty $$$$ - simple to understand as a Stars Fan that was going to playoff games starting close to 9:00 PM
When this becomes a money making activity, then it will return. Until then, it goes in the closet (Pun intended)
Well said Sean. I sometimes get frustrated with what feels like empty gestures from institutions like the NHL towards lgbtq. Like, wearing a piece of fabric for 18 minutes doesn't really move the needle, you know? But choosing to stop doing it moves the needle in the wrong direction. And I'm glad you bring up Noche Mexicana in Dallas. To me, American born white guy, it felt like pandering in a bad way. But to one of Mexican friends, it meant the world. So screw what I think. If it reached him that's what matters. And if having the whole team wear rainbow jerseys makes one gay person feel a little more welcome in the NHL, then the good outweighs whatever distraction it may cause. And let's be honest: when Bettman says distraction, he means he's dissatisfied with the level of profit Pride nights have yielded
This is the ramification of having Bettman (an old, straight, white, male attorney) running the league. He is far more concerned about the possibility of negative PR than the positive impact warm up jerseys have. The NHL already has a PR problem of just being boring. Unique warm up jerseys were a great way to inject some interest and soul into the game.
The NHL absolutely needs to appeal to a broader spectrum of viewers/fans. This is not a move forward.
Thanks for writing this, Sean. Totally agree it can be a tricky landscape to write about but also agree with your thoughts on it. I wish it could be as simple as "if you don't want to personally endorse it, or it goes against your beliefs, sit out". Too many finger pointings and condemnations instead of opening the arms and loving people and the sport. Any idea if the idea is to completely shutdown "X night" or just remove the jerseys?
Hopefully this isn't something they shut down forever but revisit when they've had time to talk to players and get a better understanding.
Thanks again for writing and sharing your thoughts!
Nice post.
Agree 100%. The NHL continues to step all over itself time and time again regarding different topics. Pride recognition, sexual abuse allegations, etc., etc. Either their leadership is woefully ill-informed or they need a new PR firm that can guide them appropriately. Maybe both? The league just continues to disappoint. I may be an old, white guy myself, but the league has way too many old, white guys running things and making embarrassingly bad decisions.
Well written - your point hidden in the end of the article - "But that shouldn’t stop the league from working to be more inclusive publicly, it also shouldn’t stop the league from reaching out to new fans." This is a reaction to the financial losses that major corporations are having based on their advertising. This is an incredible game, yet the driver is the almighty $$$$ - simple to understand as a Stars Fan that was going to playoff games starting close to 9:00 PM
When this becomes a money making activity, then it will return. Until then, it goes in the closet (Pun intended)
Do the other leagues have specialty warm up jerseys like the NHL was doing?
The AHL and ECHL do specialty jerseys all the time for warmups and for entire games.
Sorry, I meant the other Big 4 North American sports leagues like NFL, MLB, NBA. I think the MLS has special warm up jerseys.