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NHL Community Sends Messages of Support to Oilers’ Ethan Bear

Edmonton Oilers defenseman Ethan Bear received racist messages from fans after Game 4 vs. the Jets, but the NHL community is speaking up.

After racially insensitive remarks were sent to Edmonton Oilers defenseman Ethan Bear, following a Game 4 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, the hockey world has come together in many ways to stand up against racism and discrimination. It’s clear there’s certainly a long way to go when it comes to these types of issues, but it’s good to see many come together and be vocal standing against this type of unacceptable behavior.

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Bear, a player of Cree descent and the first player to wear a jersey with his name written in Cree syllabics, didn’t see the ice much in the three overtime periods that finished up the series between the Oilers and the Jets. A costly giveaway in his own zone led to the tying goal by the Jets which forced overtime and Bear knew he’d messed up. A young defenseman who is bound to make mistakes, his turnover came at the absolute wrong time.

That said, there’s no justification for fans to be so emotionally invested in a playoff series that the conversation turn racial in nature. A post from Bear’s girlfriend noted that he received numerous racist messages, but that Bear appreciated the support from others who offered their love and understanding. She wrote, “To hide behind a screen is cowardly. But to use stereotypes against him as an indigenous person is dehumanizing and awful!”

After the news surfaced, media, fans and others inside and out of the hockey community started to send messages of support. Former Edmonton Oilers defenseman Andrew Ference wrote: “Ethan Bear is a very good hockey player. Lift him up and he will be an integral part of any success the Oilers have in the future. More importantly, Ethan Bear is an incredible human. If you’re sending racist remarks his way, you’re just a dickhead. Hockey doesn’t want you.”

Kurt Leavins of the Edmonton Journal wrote, “Racist comments made by the narrow minded toward Ethan Bear reflect the worst in society. For shame. Wake the hell up. Be better human beings.”

When he heard about the comments, GM Ken Holland said he was disgusted and felt sick for his player. “It is totally unacceptable and disgusting. There is no place in our world for racism. There are many people taking the lead trying to get this out of our society which is great. Ethan is a tremendous young man and role model.”

There are countless messages that are similar in nature and it’s great to see the hockey community stand up against this sort of idiotic behavior of using race to critique someone for their on-ice performances. Frankly, a lot of players in today’s NHL might make a similar mistake in a high-pressure situation and Bear is certainly not the only person to give a puck away.

Bear Is A Defenseman With Great Potential

What’s crazy about all this, isn’t just that there’s still so much racism in the world of professional sports, or that the fans who sent these messages not only reflect the worst parts of the society, but they clearly aren’t actual fans. Any real fan of the Oilers would know and realize that Bear has an incredible future in the NHL.

Ethan Bear Edmonton Oilers
Ethan Bear Edmonton Oilers

This is a player with only 132 games of NHL regular season experience and eight games of playoff experience. He was thrust into a top-two role on the Oilers blue line and playing ungodly minutes without the experience to suggest he was never going to make a mistake. Yet, if you look at the rest of his play throughout the postseason and the regular season, his game continues to improve and he’s quite reliable. Assuming he’s not selected in the NHL Expansion Draft, he’s going to be a huge part of the Oilers future.

Fans should be happy about what Bear has the potential to do. He’s an incredible prospect who has overcome a ton of obstacles to get to this point and he’s exactly the kind of player you want as part of the core group of Oilers that will part of this team for years to come.

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