#lgbtq hockey

[chrissy-kaos]

I can’t shoot for shit anymore 😅😭.. thank you HRT for making me weak as fuck 🫡

I think I gotta lower my flex a bit. Can’t flex this 75 flex stick worth shit. I’m thinking maybe a 60-65flex. It’s tough to shoot with the 70-75. It’s hurting my arms to much.

[hockeyforlife]

A change from the regular hockey smut I post, this has been living rent in my head for days now. How backward and cowardly the NHL has become in banning Queer support. As a gay hockey player, and gay fan, let me tell you: it DOES NOT get better. Yes, you can play...if you ignore the bigots.

To have had visible support was huge. To have the ultra male toxicity culture take a step back and teach tolerance and acceptance was huge.

Yet, we're back to square one. Because Russian players want to play in North America, want our money, but don't want to wear the jerseys for a 15 minute warm-up or risk supposedly not being allowed back in their war-mongering, illegally invading, homeland. Or because James Reimer thinks homosexality is a sin. Or, because two Stall brothers are grossed out by homosexuality. Then don't wear a cross when you play boys; not everyone believes your religion.

Unless they are closeted, self-hating victims of their environment, or unless they slip and accidentally fall on a dick, they're *pretty safe* from homosexuality in the dressing room.

*Caveat: Chicago Blackhawks Kyle Beach scandal.

*Caveat: Maple Leafs Gardens / Gordon Stuckless scandal.

I jest. No one accidentally falls on a dick.

But still, we take a step back. The NHL reveals their message of inclusion was just window dressing. Some immature players don't want fags in their dressing room. The league still wants all the money it can get, Russian, gay, straight, Aboriginal, cancer...So you know, they support us, just in the shadows.

Now all causes and special jerseys are banned? No offence, but yeah, this better include Military Night, and Hockey Fights Cancer - If there can't be pride tape there can't be pink tape. Or, ignore the cowardly few, educate them why awareness is needed, take your place as leaders in sports entertainment, and make genuine inclusivity a reality.

And while you're at it NHL and Hockey Canada, let's see some real repercussions for ALL the 2018 Team Canada juniors involved in the sexual assult, not just the alledged Alex Formenton. Let's see Kaner and Towes, Hoss, and all the Blackhawk players that deny they knew anything was happening to Kyle Beach admit that they did know, and acknowledge that winning the cup was more important to them than helping out a fellow human - a fucking hockey-bro TEAMMATE - who was being preyed upon. Let's see genuine apologies, not more debunked denials. Enough others in that dressing room have come clean say you ALL knew...but, I digress.

NHL, sponsors, Hockey Canada, US Hockey, take a good long look at the toxic culture you incubate and promote.

One overlooked bright spot deserves recognition. One player made a point over the years of supporting and raising equality awareness for the community and a couple of his gay friends. Comfortable in his heterosexuality, starting in 2016, Anders Nilsson had a Pride flag on the back of many helmets for the different teams he played for over the years.

Cheers to you Anders, shame on you NHL.

[gyudons]

a sequence of Events. not crosby. not mcdavid. just one nhl player with no “reputation” and everything to lose.

[reddwoods]

happy pride????

[saucingitup]

It hasn’t been easy for many who have come before them. Twenty-six years ago in Nagano when women’s hockey debuted as an official Olympic sport, some media coverage focused more on the sexual orientation of the players than the competition.

But relationships among athletes are slowly gaining a normality in women’s pro sports. In 2021, married couple Allie Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot won a WNBA championship with the Chicago Sky, and they are just one of many couples in the league. 

Women’s sports is undergoing a transformative expansion — new leagues, more money and investment, increased media coverage — and the story of teammates as couples is only going to become more common.

“I've always been the hockey player. But I have a wife and I can be myself. People are coming to the rink and saying thank you for allowing me to be myself,” Poulin says. 

If Poulin has helped make Stacey a better hockey player, Stacey has assisted Poulin in living her most authentic life. 

And in a lot of ways, they have become bigger than the game.

Their late-September wedding at Le Peaches and Cream in Low, Que., is described by many of the 192 family members and friends who were in attendance as the perfect day. Poulin and Stacey both call it “the best day of their lives” — an epic celebration of life and love, the culmination of a relationship that began in 2017 when they locked eyes while swimming at a Team Canada event at Blue Mountain in southern Ontario.

Stacey had just competed in her first world championship, Poulin a decorated champion many times over. They were teammates, but they didn’t really know a lot about one another. 

“A few of us decided to go skinny dipping in the pool at 2 a.m.” Stacey says. “The two of us looked up into the sky at the same time and we saw a shooting star. Our eyes met and we asked each other if we just saw that. Nobody else in the pool saw it or knew what was going on but we saw it. For the rest of that night it was a weird feeling. I had a feeling.

“We always go back to that moment. Even in my wedding vows, that was the thing —that she was the wish I had always dreamed of and I didn’t realize it until now.”

and they were linemates... everybody stop drop and read this article on laura stacey and marie philip-poulin

[ourravenboys]

women’s hockey continues to be the gayest and most entertaining sport

[netscapenavigator-official]

H E L P

[gaps-between-stories]

anyways, the future of hockey is queer

[acekazoo]

[chrissy-kaos]

I had practice tonight. It was the first time I’ve played since I hurt my knee. It went pretty good. No pain so that’s awesome. It sucked going from sitting on a couch to a full practice. I’m officially dead now 😂

[allthecanadianpolitics]

Travis Dermott had a lot on his mind as he carefully wrapped the shaft of his hockey stick with rainbow-coloured tape. The NHL had dispatched a memo to teams before the season reiterating its ban on altering on-ice gear for warmups and practices to reflect theme nights. The Arizona Coyotes defenceman was about to become the first player to defy that edict on supporting social causes — including Pride Tape for the LGBTQ community. And he was going to do it in a game. “A bunch of thoughts are going through your head,” Dermott said in a phone interview this week. “But not one of them was, ‘Should I do this or shouldn’t I do this?’ It was more, ‘How fast is it going to blow up? How much is it going to blow up? Is anyone even going to notice?’

Continue Reading.

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

[gyudons]

go OFF avs admin

[annieqattheperipheral]

a facilitator from nhlpa's mental health first aid program First Line

One of the things I do with them, the teams that I work with, it's called The Mask of Masculinities and on the one side of the mask, we put, what does the world see? How does the world see me? And then on the other side, we put, how do you feel? What are you hiding?

And when we do that activity, it's incredibly powerful because not only do you have a bunch of male hockey players playing with glitter and feathers and things like that. But when they read the mask there's this shared story of having to be tough, having to be aggressive, having to be dominant, being the provider.

And on the other side, there's vulnerability, there's mental health, there's suicidal thoughts. Some even use the mask as a way to come out because they're bisexual or gay, but they have to hide it because of the narrative.

Every time I interview with men or with the players, we always ask, is there anything else you would like me to know? Anything else you would like me to say and, unanimously, every time they say, thank you for letting me talk. Thank you for letting me share my story.

Sorry, I'm starting to cry because it's just the pain is just so deep. Sorry. And there's no voice for them.

I think things are getting better. I think now we are having conversations that we never would have had before. You know so there are still entrenched narratives that they need to change because there is such a huge call you know, for people to-- how do I do this differently? How do I do this differently? Because it is a crisis in our sport.

Highly rec the entire vid. Also includes a couple of the 20 nhl players that volunteered for the program, including Joseph Woll and Ryan Strome.

As well as Corey Hirsch, former stanley cup winning NHL goalie who suffered with OCD while playing until he got help. His podcast Blindsided hosted with psychiatrist Dr. Diane Mclntosh is excellent.

[saucingitup]

Kraken broadcaster JT Brown shares why Pride is so important to him and why he’ll be celebrating the LGBTQ+ community all month long

June is an exciting month. There’s Stanley Cup final hockey on the TV, the sun is shining down on Seattle, I hit the links on Father’s Day, and it's Pride month—a month dedicated to celebrating the LGBTQ+ community and commemorating the 1969 Stonewall Uprising in Manhattan. In our house, June is a busy month, but nothing gets celebrated harder than Pride.

Earlier this month, I had the honor of playing in the Seattle Pride Classic at the Kraken Community Iceplex. The invitation to share the ice with LGBTQ+ players from all over is an honor I don’t take lightly. Striking up a conversation on the bench between shifts, I turned to the player next to me. “Nice tape job. Canucks fan?” I said, noting the different colors of tape spiraling down the blade. “No, these colors represent one of the queer flags,” they said.

The bad news is I felt like an idiot. The good news is, I’ll always recognize that flag. Trying means stumbling, losing the puck, shooting wide (pick your analogy), but I’ve never been too proud to admit I caused the turnover and apologize. And we both laughed because sometimes falling on your ass is funny.

From ice to asphalt, the Pride celebration continues as my family and I will be at the 50th annual Seattle Pride Parade on June 30. As someone who is known for their flair for flashy game-day suits, it should not come as a surprise that I love an excuse to get dressed up. Throw in good music and free swag and you’ll understand why I don’t miss a pride parade.

And no one does pride quite like Seattle. It’s no wonder the Kraken pull up to the parade every year with a crew so deep I momentarily worry we’re going to hold up the parade. We’re out there flinging Kraken giveaways like someone is keeping score of how many each employee can hand out—I always aim for the high score.

Of course, being an ally isn't just flinging Kraken patches into a crowd or embarrassingly mistaking flag colors for rival team branding. A lot of it is just showing up.

I show up for my queer wife so she knows I support her even if I still don’t understand what “Brat summer” means. I show up for my kids so they know I love their authentic selves no matter what. I show up for my friends so they know they’re safe with me. I show up because there are LGBTQ+ people out there who are being stood up by the ones they love, by policies, by corporations, by strangers.

People always praise me for being an ally, but having been on the receiving end of bigotry, I know how much easier it is to stand on this side. When I fight for BIPOC equality, I am always lifted by the voices and support of the LGBTQ+ community. Every single time, they have supported me in my fight to help end racism in hockey.

They have been incredible teammates to me and so being one to them was never a choice I made, it was just something I did—and will continue to do with whatever platform I’m given. Everyone deserves the safety and support to live their authentic lives. When we lift up those who need us most, we all reap the benefits of a safer and more inclusive space.

This Pride month, I’d like to encourage others to show up—unabashedly loud and proud—for yourself and for others. Have a happy, safe, and fun Pride!

[wlwlovingwlw]

Lorena and Flor

Hockey girls 2019-2020

[happygirl2oo2]

Queer Sports Romance Books Recs For Pride Month 🌈 (all are books I've either read or currently have on my own tbr list)

Hockey

Rookie Recovery (Bobcat Boys #1) by Jemma Croft and Lex Veia [mlm]

Vancouver Orcas interconnected series by Amy Aislin [mlm]

Hometown Hero (Whistleport Hockey #1) by Declan Rhodes [mlm]

Hockey Guys interconnected series by Sarina Bowen [mlm]

Prove It by Stephanie Hoyt [mlm]

Fake Boyfriend interconnected series by Eden Finley [mlm]

Caught off Guard by Catherine Cloud [mlm]

Chicago Thunder interconnected series by Jodi Oliver [mlm]

Don't Look Down (Best Laid Plans #1) by Jessica Ann [mlm]

Hockey Ever After interconnected series by Ashlyn Kane and Morgan James [mlm]

Love & Other Inconveniences by Catherine Cloud [mlm]

Time to Shine by Rachel Reid [mlm]

Relationship Goals interconnected series by Brigham Vaughn [mlm]

Light Up the Lamp by Kit Oliver [mlm]

Puckboys interconnected series by Eden Finley and Saxon James [mlm]

Hot Shot (Orlando Storm #1) by Marissa James [mlm]

Breakaway partially-interconnected series by E.L. Massey [mlm]

Delay of Game interconnected series by Hannah Henry [mlm]

Offsides interconnected series by J.J. Mulder [mlm]

Roughing (Portland Seabirds #1) by Michaela Grey [mlm]

Stick Side interconnected series by Amy Aislin [mlm]

Let's Do This (IFU Hockey #1) by Loren Leigh [mlm]

CU Hockey interconnected series by Eden Finley and Saxon James [mlm]

Back to Center (Mohegan U Hockey #2) by Ryan Taylor and Joshua Harwood [mlm]

Penalty Box interconnected series by Ari Baran [mlm]

Shenanigans (Brooklyn Hockey #6) by Sarina Bowen [m/f with a bi mc]

The Inside Edge by Ashlyn Kane [mlm]

Icebreaker by A. L. Graziadei [mlm]

Hockey Bois by A.L. Heard [mlm]

Three Is The Luckiest Number by Catherine Cloud [mlm]

Not Over You by Samantha Wayland [mlm]

Wake Up, Nat & Darcy by Kate Cochrane [wlw]

It's a Love/Skate Relationship by Carli J. Corson [wlw]

Off the Bench Duet Series by Kimberly Knight [mlm]

Twincerely Yours by Eden Finley [mlm]

Car Racing

Pole Position by Rebecca J. Caffery [mlm]

Lights Out Series interconnected series by various authors [mlm]

Fast Love (Fast Love #1) by Kerry Lockhart [wlw]

Driven By Passion (Gamble Racing #2) by Renee Dahlia [mlm]

Redline (Redline #1) by Emma Barlowe [mlm]

Furious by Jamie Pacton and Rebecca Podos [wlw]

Bowling

The 7-10 Split by Karmen Lee [wlw]

Baseball 

The Prospects by KT Hoffman [mlm]

Batting Style by Louisa Masters [mlm]

You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian [mlm]

The Smile Has Left Your Eyes by Danielle Dawsen [mlm]

Volleyball 

We Got the Beat by Jenna Miller [wlw]

Always More (Sports #1) by Nicole Pyland [wlw]

Roller derby

Mighty Millie Novak by Elizabeth Holden [wlw]

False Start by Santana Knox [wlw]

Basketball 

How You Get the Girl by Anita Kelly [wlw]

Love and Sportsball (Atlanta Cannons #1) by Meka James [wlw]

Zone Defense interconnected series by Becca Seymour [mlm]

Fencing

Fence comic series by C.S. Pacat and Joanna the Mad [mlm]

Football

One Last Play by E.B. Neal [mlm]

Coming Out on the Sidelines by Dev Hahn [wlw]

Forward Entry (Sydney Swallows #1) by Aurora Crane [mlm]

The Game (Charleston Condors #2) by Beth Bolden

Atlanta Lightning interconnected series by Riley Hart [mlm]

Fumbled Past (San Diego Seals #2) by Cecelia Storm [mlm]

Onside Kiss (Domingo #1) by Octavia Jensen [mlm]

You Started It (Fan Service Series #3) by Hinsel Meyer [mlm]

Tigers and Devils (Tigers and Devils #1) by Sean Kennedy [mlm]

Roosevelt College interconnected series by Christina Lee [mlm]

You & Me by Tal Bauer [mlm]

Crushing on the Quarterback by Baylin Crow [mlm]

Tennis

Deuce (Tennyson Bend #2) by P.T. Ambler [mlm]

Soccer

You Don't Have a Shot by Racquel Marie [wlw]

Everything for You (Bergman Brothers #5) by Chloe Liese [mlm]

Cleat Cute by Meryl Wilsner [wlw]

Pull Me Under by Zarah Detand [mlm]

The Game Changer (Denver Defiant, #1) by Finley Chuva [wlw]

I Like Me Better by Robby Weber [mlm]

Finding a Keeper (Sports #4) by Nicole Pyland [wlw]

Don't Hate the Player by Shelby Elizabeth [mlm]

Endgame by Zoe Reed [wlw]

Hotshot by Clare Lydon [wlw]

Rugby

Attractive Forces by Jax Calder [mlm]

The Tighthead (Lincoln Knights #1) by Charlie Novak [mlm]

Softball

The Unexpected Dream (Sports #3) by Nicole Pyland [wlw]

Chess

Always the Almost by Edward Underhill [trans boy x boy]

Wrestling 

Alondra by Gina Femia [bisexual girl mc]

Lacrosse 

Catch and Cradle by Katia Rose [wlw]

Swimming

Tears in the Water Margherita Scialla [LGBTQ+]

Badminton

Shy by Ashish Rastogi [mlm]