The NHL community has been recently riddled with controversies surrounding Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov. The Russian ice hockey player, who has had a prominent career in the NHL, has been in the news for refusing to wear a rainbow jersey for Pride Night. This controversy has also caught the eye of Twitter CEO Elon Musk.
It all started when NHL Network’s senior reporter and analyst E.J. Hradek made some statements regarding the defenseman’s refusal to wear the pride jersey during warmups. The man behind the brains of Tesla and Space X has also left a message for the NHL world.
What does the community think of this situation?
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Elon Musk does not agree with the NHL star getting hate for his actions. Commenting on the controversy, Twitter user Maxwell Meyer wrote “The gay movement, in about 7 years, went from ‘equal rights!’ to ‘go f***ing die in a trench war if you don’t wear a pride shirt!'”. In response, the genius behind Tesla wrote, “The pendulum has swung a bit too far.”
As expected, social media went into an uproar over Musk’s comment. While NHL fans had mixed reactions, most of them agreed with the CEO of Twitter.
The pendulum has swung a bit too far
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 20, 2023
The Russian ice hockey player stated that he didn’t wear the jersey because of his religious values. He also states that he has no hatred for any community. Yet, Provorov received a message from the senior reporter of the NHL Network, E.J. Hradek, asking him to leave the United States.
The Russian NHL star shuts down critics
While a lot of criticism has been rolling in the name of Ivan Provorov, the NHL star has retorted by shutting down reporters. In a recent video, Provorov states that he would only be answering questions related to hockey and the upcoming games. However, when one reporter asked if he had any reservations about not playing in the warmups, Provorov cut him off saying, “Did you not hear what I just said? Can you respect that?”
Ivan Provorov OWNS reporter trying to push agenda.
"Did you not hear what I just said? Can you respect that?" pic.twitter.com/oY50uWG4Me
— Luke Gentile (@lukegentile21) January 19, 2023
Ivan Provorov reiterates that he respects everyone’s beliefs, and everyone should also respect his, as he doesn’t like to beef about this controversy any further. This situation has also raised a lot of backlash against the NHL Network, as their senior reporter just told a world-renowned player to go and play with his life in a warzone.
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What are your opinions regarding this controversy? Let us know in the comment section.
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