The New York Rangers have issued a statement regarding their seventh annual Pride Night, during which some players did not wear special warm-up jerseys that honor the LGBTQ+ community. The statement said, “Our organization respects the LGBTQ+ community and we are proud to bring attention to important local community organizations as part of another great Pride Night.
In keeping with our organization’s core values, we support everyone’s individual right to respectfully express their beliefs.” The team also made a charitable donation to a group that supports homeless LGBTQ+ youth and illuminated Madison Square Garden in rainbow lights during the game.
This marks the second instance this month in which a Pride Night in the National Hockey League has not gone as planned, following Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov’s boycott of his team’s Pride Night festivities.