October 13, 2023
NHL Star Scott Laughton Stands Up to the League's Ban on Showing LGBTQ Support
Emell Adolphus READ TIME: 2 MIN.
Despite a ban on NHL players wrapping their sticks in Pride tape, one player declares that nothing will stop him from showing his support for LGBTQ people.
As reported by The Philadelphia Inquirer, NHL star Scott Laughton said that you can expect to see him show his support on the ice regardless of the rules.
"You'll probably see me with the Pride tape on that night," Laughton said Wednesday. "It's not going to affect the way I go about it. If they want to say something, they can, but it's not going to make a difference on what I do every night for the Pride community."
He added, "If I have to buy it myself, I will."
And that's what you call an ally. The NHL's theme night guidance previously only banned themed jerseys during warmups. Then last week it was updated to include stick tape as well, given that players would previously show support for causes on their sticks.
The bans on themed jerseys and shows of support seem to be in response to former Flyer Ivan Provorov, who refused to wear a rainbow jersey during the team's Pride Night.
"I think it got probably a little too political last year with everything, when you're just trying to make it easy on people to come to games and feel welcome," Laughton explained.
"I know how far we've come in this game," he said. "One of it being the language you use on a day-to-day basis, and how it can affect people. And I think we've come a long way from when I started with the You Can Play team, and I think our team does a great job of it."
Laughton is an ambassador and regularly hosts events for the You Can Play Project, which advocates for respecting LGBTQ+ athletes.
Other NHL players have also spoken out against the ban, including the Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid and Zach Hyman and the Toronto Maple Leafs' Morgan Reilly.
"It's to make people feel welcome at the rink," Laughton said. "And if you have a closeted gay player in the room, and you do some of this stuff, I wonder where it goes from there."
