NHL closer to openly gay player
EFFORTS TO ADDRESS HOMOPHOBIA in the locker room may be making progress, TSN interviews suggest
Aaron Ward believes there will be an openly gay player in the National Hockey League in the near future.
Ward, who teamed with producer Mike Ferrell on a recent three-part feature called ReOrientation on TSN, said he was encouraged by comments made by Los Angeles Kings captain Dustin Brown in the concluding episode of the feature.
“I think the NHL is further ahead than most of the other major sports leagues,” Ward said in a recent telephone interview from Washington, where he was watching his son’s peewee team play in a tournament. “There has been progress in addressing homophobia in the locker room and I was moved when I listened to Dustin Brown.”
When asked by Ward what the reaction would be if one of his teammates came out, Brown said: “I think as a group of guys, we would be fine with it. There might be some players who are uncomfortable, but they’d be okay with it. The one thing, for me as a captain (I’d say): ‘This is our teammate. … He’s going to help us win games. It’s not any different from two weeks ago when we were battling together.’ If that type of situation a rose, this guy’s our teammate and we’re going to have his back no matter what.”
There are no openly gay athletes in the four major professional sports leagues in North America: the NHL, National Football League, National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball. Robbie Rogers is playing in Major League Soccer after coming out, but NBA player Jason Collins hasn’t been able to find a new employer after coming out last year.
As Ward points out in ReOrientation, the NHL has been supportive of You Can Play, an organization dedicated to the advancement of opportunities for gay, lesbian and transgender athletes. The group was founded by longtime NHL executive Brian Burke and his son, Patrick. You Can Play was founded to honour the legacy of Brian Burke’s son, Brendan, who died in an auto accident in 2010.
With a strong push from NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, the league has moved to get gay slurs out of the locker room and off the ice.
Brown and Edmonton Oil- ers goaltender Ben Scrivens told Ward the culture is changing, but there’s still a way to go.
Ward said he was excited about the TSN project because his mother, who is a nurse, worked with AIDS patients and helped established one of the first hospices for AIDS patients in Ottawa.
“I grew up in a liberal household and we were encouraged to talk about things in an open manner,” Ward said.
Ward has made a seamless transition from NHL defenceman to hockey analyst on TSN. He retired as a player in 2010 after 13 seasons and three Stanley Cups — two with Detroit and one with Carolina. He’s hoping that the ReOrientation series will open more opportunities to examine issues away from the daily coverage of the NHL.
“I like to learn about different things,” Ward said. “I love challenges.”
Ward went the U.S. college route after playing Tier Two junior hockey in Ontario and played three seasons at the University of Michigan. He considered majoring in journalism, but opted for radio and TV production, which fits with his new career.
While TSN will lose its share of the NHL national television package next sea- son, Ward said the network remains committed to providing coverage of the game.
He noted that TSN’s key players — James Duthie, Bob McKenzie and Darren Dreger — will stay in place and TSN will have regional games featuring Winnipeg, Montreal and possibly Ottawa and Toronto.
Ward commutes to Toronto from his home in North Carolina for his TSN job.
“It works out because there’s a direct flight,” said Ward, who fell in love with the Raleigh area when he was playing for the Hurricanes. “My wife also loves it. She said the only way she’ll be leaving is in a pine box.” You can watch the ReOrientation series and additional interviews at tsn.ca.