Minnesota Wild defenseman Matt Dumba became the first NHL player to kneel during the American national anthem on Saturday when he did so after giving an impassioned speech about racism prior to a game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Edmonton Oilers.
When an issue is bigger than the game, we must speak out. #WeSkateFor Black Lives. pic.twitter.com/mgmMgRM8vI
— NHL (@NHL)
August 1, 2020 Until Monday night, though, no in-uniform NHL player had kneeled during either the American or Canadian anthem. That changed with the round-robin game between the Dallas Stars and Vegas Golden Knights, as former Bruin Tyler Seguin, Stars teammate Jason Dickinson, and Golden Knights players Ryan Reaves (who is Black) and Robin Lehner all took a knee during both anthems.
We are united.#WeSkateFor Equality pic.twitter.com/7gtGgxWPsm
— x-Dallas Stars (@DallasStars)
August 3, 2020 We are united in the fight for racial equality.We support our players and all those who peacefully seek to inspire change and raise awareness against racial injustice. pic.twitter.com/iA7CvGX1eA
— y-Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights)
August 3, 2020 Other players and teams have shown support for the fight to end racism in other ways. The Bruins, for example, wore shirts before their game Sunday with messages like "End Racism" and "Listen. Learn. Change." and then linked arms during the anthems.
pic.twitter.com/mGJqvwQCUH
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins)
August 2, 2020 Seguin, Dickinson, Reaves and Lehner took things a step further. That Seguin is part of this groundbreaking group shouldn't be a surprise. Back in June he marched in a Black Lives Matter protest and put out a statement saying he felt "a responsibility to do more" in the fight against racism.
pic.twitter.com/tfQAs3RWGc
— Tyler Seguin (@tseguinofficial)
June 2, 2020 Presented by:
