Boston Bruins players plan to shut down weapons during the US and Canadian anthems to promote racial equality, while members of the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins lined up on Tuesday before the first exhibition game of the new NHL season.
The league said it would introduce Black Lives Matter and other social justice issues during opening ceremonies this weekend in Toronto and Edmonton, Alberta. NHL executive Steve Mayer hopes other protests will happen organically.
The Bruins became the first team to announce their intentions to highlight racial injustice as part of what the players said is “a sign of solidarity with the black community.”
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“In the past few months we have been trying to educate ourselves and learn more about racial injustice in our country and around the world,” the Bruins players said in a statement. “This action is for the sole purpose of being a positive sign of support for the Black Community and a way to use our platform to help end racism.”
Columbus Blue Jackets defender Seth Jones on Monday hinted at a possible deal with the Bruins, his opponent in an exhibition game on Thursday.
“We can do something with them before the game and just show a united front that we are all here, we all care and we are all trying to make a difference in the world,” said Jones, who is black. “Obviously we are trying to create a cultural change, not just in hockey but around the world.”
The NBA painted “Black Lives Matter” on the Walt Disney World courts for the restart of the basketball season and allowed players to replace the names on the back of their shirts with references to racial injustice. Major League Baseball invested his initials on the field to read “BLM” for Black Lives Matter last week.
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The NHL has signs that say #WeSkateFor Equality within the arenas where the games are held. Mayer, the league’s director of content and senior executive vice president for events and entertainment, said the tributes to COVID-19 frontline workers and the Black Lives Matter movement will be part of a “powerful opening night” on Saturday.
“We will see how our players naturally react to what we will present on opening night, but there will be some moments within the opening ceremony that Black Lives Matter and social justice will play,” Mayer said.
