Gary Bettman on pride night controversies: NHL must respect individual choice...
i found his article to have the most in depth coverage and have the most important quotes from bettman but also Burke...
https://theathletic.com/4156028/2023/02/04/gary-bettman-flyers-rangers-pride-nhl/
here is tortorella defending Provorov and how they came up with a plan days before the event together and how they were going to handle it.
https://nypost.com/2023/01/19/nhl-stands-by-diversity-effort-despite-ivan-provorov-incident/
here is the second best article covering bettmans statements which leaves out many statements.
https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/article/bettman-confirms-toronto-will-host-2024-all-star-game-responds-to-provorov-controversy/
here are some tidbits from the athletic that i think are important...
Brian Burke on Provorov controversy.
Earlier this week, NHL executive Brian Burke said it was “extremely disappointing” to see Provorov decline to wear the Pride jersey and the Rangers incident. Burke emerged as a leading advocate for LGBTQ+ awareness in hockey more than a decade ago after his son Brendan came out publicly. The Burke family helped to launch the advocacy group You Can Play, which became a voice to combat homophobia in sports.
“I would view this as a much bigger setback if I didn’t view it as ‘we’re still going the right way,’” Burke said in an interview with The Athletic. “In other words: As disappointed as I am, it’s important that people realize these are setbacks of a minor nature, in my view, in terms of where we are, versus where we were 12 years ago.
“And I don’t think anyone should lose sight of that.”
Bettman on Provorov controversy.
“Whether you choose to embrace and make a statement on behalf of a cause affirmatively, if you choose not to do that, doesn’t necessarily make you a bigot,” Bettman said Saturday. “I’m sure you don’t endorse every single charity that solicits you, and you don’t participate in every social cause. You pick and choose the ones that are important to you. The ones you don’t choose to do don’t necessarily make you bigoted, misogynistic or homophobic or racist.”
At the time of the Provorov incident, Bettman said “when you look at all of our players and the commitments that they’ve made to social causes and making our game welcoming and inclusive, let’s focus on the 700 that embrace it and not one or two that may have some issues for their own personal reasons.”
“We’re trying to be open, welcoming and inclusive,” Bettman said Saturday. “And within parameters being welcoming and diverse and inclusive requires, to a line, which gets drawn in each case, that you’re tolerant, to a point, of various views.”