Dan Boyle answers if he’s ever known any openly gay hockey players, how a locker room would react to one, and how he’d personally feel about it:
“Would I care if there was a gay player on my team or not? I don’t give a shit, as long as he helps me win hockey games.”
transcript under cut
Sheng Peng: And kind of a separate question, but also a very good question: without outing anybody, were there any openly gay hockey players when you played or that everyone kind of knew about or you knew about, and how do you think in general an NHL room would react to a player coming out?
Dan Boyle: I don't mind the question, but like, yeah, no, in 18 years I actually don't know if--has there ever been a gay hockey player come out?
SP: Not in the NHL, not in like, I think-
DB: At the NHL level, of course, I mean, yeah. Yeah, no, so no, I mean yeah, it's not something that has ever come up in the 18 [years], not just in--it's never come up in the NHL as a whole. Now if you use statistics and life, you would think, you would think that's not possible. But, and then how would we, you know, I think the truth is, can I sit here and say there wouldn't be jokes and jabs? No, a locker room is a tough place to be, no matter if you're gay, straight, your dick size, your color of your- you know what I mean?
[SP laughs and adds something here that I'm unable to make out.]
DB: Yeah, yeah, but it's fair game for everybody, and it's one of those tough, just, it's locker room love, I call it. Like, you just--everybody kind of makes fun of each other, but at the end of the day you're all brothers. So, there would, I'm sure, be some jokes, but that being said, would I care if there was a gay player on my team or not? I don't give a shit, as long as he helps me win hockey games. I couldn't care less, and it's--there's nothing wrong with that. So it's not even-- it's, yeah. I didn't expect to have that [question]. I didn't have this on my bingo card either, but.
[Talking over each other, unclear.]
DB: I don't think it would be a problem because it's who we are as a human race. We--that's who we are.
SP: Well, let me go deeper though, because I do have a follow up. Do you think though that you would have teammates that might have an issue with it? Like you don't, and probably most of your teammates wouldn't, but you know it might be possible.
DB: Well, again, based on statistics in the world, then yeah, then there would be some guys that would have issues with it.
SP: That's normal, right. That makes sense, yeah.
DB: There's racism, there's sexism, there's homophobia. You would think, you would think that somebody would have a problem with it. Not me.
SP: Okay. Thank you-
DB: Unless, unless, unless you didn't work hard, and didn't fucking make us win games, then I'm coming---
It’s a question that gets a lot of different answers.
Sometimes the answer sounds like they memorized the Catechism.
Other times, it’s a personal version of the 19th Psalm – “the heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament shows forth His handiwork.”
Sometimes it’s the fruit of years of study and deep thinking.
Other times, it’s the story of a life-changing moment.
Sometimes the answer can be heart-breaking.
Or, they may not be able to put it into words at all. Except to say that they do believe.
Which answer is the right one? Which answer is best?
In today’s Gospel, Jesus responds to Philip’s struggle to believe this way, “believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves.”
Which means that God’s answer to the question – “which answer is best?” – is a simple “Yes.”
As God sees it, they are all the right answers.
Whether it’s something from the Catechism that’s stayed with you since you were a child. Or the glory of God’s creation that speaks to your heart.
Whether it’s the story of a life-changing moment. Or something you can’t put into words.
If it leads you to the God who has always loved you?
If it helps you to drop everything that wants to get in the way? So that can you turn towards Home, so that you can rush headlong towards the One who is waiting for you with open arms?
