Dec 5, 2016
"I think the NHL’s reluctance to support women’s hockey has a lot to do with the fact that culturally women’s hockey is seen as antithetical to the NHL. Women’s hockey is practically civil disobedience; women in sports still get an untold amount of shit from people, and women’s sports generally pushes back against gender stereotypes and essentialism. Harrison Browne’s jersey is one of the best-selling jerseys in the NWHL. If the NHL starts supporting women’s hockey, I think it inevitably leads to a higher level of awareness about stuff like head injuries/fighting, toxic masculinity in sports, gender, LGBTQ issues, and classism. The NHL probably doesn’t want to confront that stuff; it’s volatile"