Unless you’ve managed to completely tune out the sporting world over the past several days (we’re jealous if you have), you’ve probably heard of Colin Kaepernick’s refusal to stand for the U.S. national anthem. Just about every sporting news outlet has created a hot take on his decision which frankly only represents how little real news there is in the sporting world at this time.
Thankfully, the NHL usually doesn’t have stories quite as annoying as those seen in the NFL, but the Kaepernick story has bled across sporting lines which is why you’re reading about it on a hockey blog.
How would the NHL handle a similar situation? Do they have a policy in place? Aaron Portzline answered your pressing questions regarding player etiquette during the anthems in hockey games.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told The Dispatch this morning that the league does not “have a policy, per se.”
“We would handle each situation on a case-by-case basis,” Daly said.
A player boycotting the anthem in the NHL would create lots of questions. What would they do if they were in the starting lineup? Instead of standing along the blueline, would they sit down on the ice during the anthem? Would they refuse to be in the starting lineup so they could sit on the bench? The NHL also has the semi-regular occurrence of two anthems being played before games featuring a Canadian team which could create some interesting situations.
Yes, this post is further proof that hockey needs to hurry the hell up and get here.
