The NHL and the NHLPA announced a new initiative on Tuesday morning in Nashville with the hopes of advancing equity and inclusion in the game of hockey. A sizeable seed money donation came as part of this announcement.
As announced by commissioner Gary Bettman, the Player Inclusion Coalition was launched. This new coalition comprises of current and former NHL players and women’s professional hockey players who work to advance equity and inclusion in the sport of hockey both on and off the ice.
In addition, the NHL and NHLPA have earmarked more than $1 million to support the coalition’s programs through contributions to grassroot organizations, player-perspective storytelling and other special projects. The NHL Player Inclusion Coalition is co-chaired by NHL Alumni Anson Carter and P.K. Subban and now has 20 members with a range of perspectives across Players of color, LGBTQ+ Players, and allies. Carter was on hand at Ford Ice Center in Nashville for the announcement.
“The commitment is to provide the NHL with insights regarding equality and inclusivity that only the players can give us,” commissioner Bettman said on Tuesday. “And with support and funding from the league and Player’s Association to develop and execute action plans to grow the game that we all love. So this is more than about recommendations. This is about specific action plans to grow the game and to make sure it is even more welcoming and inclusive.”
“Today is an exciting day and it goes back a couple of days,” NHLPA director Marty Walsh said. “And when you think about it the world we live in and I come out of the world of politics, we’re always talking about division and divisiveness. And today it’s a different conversation. It’s about inclusion. This Player’s Inclusion Coalition is going to continue to do some amazing things for young people all across this country in Canada and in the NHL.”
Coalition Members Helped Award Grants
Throughout the 2022-23 season, each coalition member selected an organization that supports diversity and inclusion in hockey to receive a $5,000 USD grant from the NHL Player Inclusion Coalition Action Fund. The full list of members and organizations awarded the grants are listed below.
- Cam Atkinson: Ed Snider Youth Hockey & Education, a non-profit that uses the sport of hockey to educate and empower underresourced youth of Philadelphia to prosper in the game of life.
- Ethan Bear: Little Native Hockey League, an annual hockey tournament that brings together First Nation youth in Ontario for community-building and empowerment.
- J.T. Brown: Seattle Pride Hockey Association, an organization committed to promoting and advocating for diversity and inclusiveness in the Pacific Northwest ice hockey community, with specific attention to LGBTQ+ inclusivity.
- Blake Bolden: The Empowerment Effect, a mentorship program supporting young females in ice hockey, ages 7-16, from underserved communities in the Los Angeles area.
- Madison Bowey: Detroit Ice Dreams Hockey Association, a youth hockey organization that minimizes the barriers that prevent underrepresented communities from access to ice hockey.
- Anson Carter: The Atlanta Jr. Thrashers, a program that offers girls in the South opportunities to play hockey and develop into strong female leaders; and the Atlanta Sparks, a program that provides a fun and safe environment for athletes with special needs to play hockey.
- Julie Chu: Caroline Ouellette Girls Hockey Celebration, an organization that aims to promote and develop female hockey via an all-girls hockey tournament with fun and competitive games.
- Meghan Duggan: Hockey in New Jersey, an organization that inspires diverse youth to develop life skills, succeed academically, and create positive relationships through the sport of hockey; and Madison Gay Hockey Association, an all-gender hockey league for the LGBTQIA community in Madison, Wisconsin.
- Mark Fraser: Seaside Hockey, a program that provides assistance to visible minority youths in the Greater Toronto Area to help more diverse children play hockey and gain life skills.
- Chris Kreider: Ice Hockey in Harlem, an organization that offers ice hockey and off-ice programming that exposes young people in Harlem to experiences that prepare them for their future.
- Brigette Lacquette: Siksika SN7,a group of youth and young adults who provide hockey programming alongside peer-to-peer support for young people in Siksika Nation.
- Georges Laraque: Hockey 4 Youth, an organization that provides new Canadian youth with an opportunity to play ice hockey at no cost. Laraque’s grant helped launch a new program for girls in grade 5-6 in the Saint-Laurent area of Montreal.
- Jamal Mayers: North City Blues, a program for St. Louis students enrolled in KIPP schools and/or Friendly Temple that provides free instruction to learn ice hockey.
- Al Montoya: The University of Texas at Arlington’s University Crossroads. Montoya’s grant will support a scholarship for students interested in a career in sports management, to inspire students from more backgrounds to consider careers in hockey.
- Sarah Nurse: Seaside Hockey, a program that provides assistance to visible minority youths in the Greater Toronto Area to help more diverse children play hockey and gain life skills.
- Ryan Reaves: Ice Hockey in Harlem, an organization that offers ice hockey and off-ice programming that exposes young people in Harlem to experiences that prepare them for their future.
- Abby Roque: Clark Park Coalition Hockey, a program that offers recreational, educational, social, and mentoring programs for southwest Detroit families to help youth grow into responsible, self-confident adults.
- Kevin Shattenkirk: Anaheim Family YMCA Youth Street Hockey League. Shattenkirk’s grant is being used to cover the registration fees for participants to help the program grow.
- P.K. Subban: HEROS Hockey, an organization that uses the game of ice hockey to teach life-skills and empower marginalized youth by providing free hockey programming to youth across Canada.
- Zach Whitecloud: Dakota Nation Winterfest Minor Hockey Tournament, an annual tournament that coincides with celebration of Indigenous culture. Whitecloud’s grant will be used to subsidize entry fees to reduce the cost for participating youth teams.
Ryan Reaves on Importance of Coalition
After the announcement, I had the chance to catch up with Minnesota Wild forward Ryan Reaves about the importance of Tuesday’s announcement. He’s pleased that progress is being made after being in a committee for three years.
“It’s been three years now since we formed and it was a committee before. It was a lot of Zoom calls and talking, throwing, bouncing ideas around trying to figure out what this group was really trying to accomplish,” Reaves said. “Now that we have the announcement turned into the coalition, I think it really shows all that talking is now coming to action. We’re an action-based coalition now.”
What does the coalition see as some of its biggest challenges out of the gate?
“This subject is always hard to kind of break through,” Reaves said. “I think there’s always going to be pushback. There’s always going to be challenges of getting into these communities and really exposing them to the game in the proper way. But like any coalition, you’re going to have your challenges and that’s what we’re here for. That’s what our monthly meetings are for. You talk it out and we’ll get through it.”
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What advice does Reaves have for those in the middle of a struggle looking to overcome challenges in their lives?
“I would say first of all, talk to somebody. Don’t bottle it up. There are very ignorant people out there. But for every ignorant person, there are thousands and millions of good people who have your back and have gone through something that are there to talk to you about it and whatever it is you need. I’ve been through a little bit. I think a lot of guys and girls are up on that stage. They’ve been through something and have some type of support system.”
“I’ve talked to a few kids in Minnesota where they were playing hockey and somebody dropped a racial slur on them. It really affects them. When you’re young like that, you carry that with you. So to be able to hear these stories and somebody approached me and said ‘can you talk to this kid and be able to talk him through it?’ I think it’s really important because a kid of color trying to come into hockey and then going through that will quickly turned away. They’re already hesitant to come in because people don’t look like them in this sport. The stuff that this group is going to do is going to help kids like that through some tough times.”
A new website, https://www.nhl.com/info/player-inclusion-coalition, is now live with more information about the group’s members and efforts to date.