As hockey and the NHL grew in the United States decades ago, the sport embraced guys fighting. Mostly straight guys.
Macho bros in the stands cheered it on. It was the future of American hockey.
That has changed in recent years, with the number of hockey fights dropping dramatically, especially in the playoffs. But the macho, hypermasculine gene is still present and it showed itself Wednesday in a WWE-style cage match between the Boston Bruins and the Florida Panthers.
Players were tossed, penalty minutes were issued, one of the coaches loved it and the whole thing could have been avoided. If only the players behaved like gay guys at a dance party.
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Ultimately the NHL brawl was a bunch of cat scratching, with the Panthers already dominating the NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs game. And the boys needed to let out their pent-up frustrations. Florida won the game, 6-1, tying the series at 1-1.
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By Jim Buzinski | November 22, 2023
If only the NHL had more gay players.
It’s not that gay athletes can’t hold their own in a brawl. They can. Try messing with former NFL player Esera Tuaolo. He will F you up.
In the NHL minor league system, Luke Prokop is 6-foot-5. Good luck!
You know who doesn’t fight? Gay guys. You can put 5,000 gay guys in a venue, lock the doors, add some music from Morabito, and there will be zero fights. You might need two security guards to point 5,000 guys in the right direction, but that’s it.
Throw 46 (assumed to be) straight NHL players on the ice? You might as well hire the National Guard to keep these idiots from fighting.
The NHL is still the only professional sports league in North America to never have a current or former athlete come out. This is 11 years after Robbie Rogers and Jason Collins came out while active athletes. Michael Sam and Carl Nassib came out after them.
It’s 25 years since Billy Bean took the leap after retiring from MLB.
It’s 50 years since Dave Kopay came out after his NFL career.
Five decades, and zero NHL players have felt comfortable enough to come out. This includes former players! Retired. With their husband in Des Moines.
The NHL is viewed as the most anti-LGBTQ pro sports league in North America. And it’s not even close.
Shocker.
