The NHL created a stir earlier this month when it told teams that as part of a decision from the board of governors meeting in June, players won’t be allowed to use Pride-themed tape or otherwise show support for special initiatives while on the ice this season. It has led to an outcry from various groups, media, fans and players — and, on Saturday, a protest from the Arizona Coyotes’ Travis Dermott.
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NHL rules around Pride nights have drawn attention since last season, when some players, citing religious beliefs or safety concerns, chose not to wear Pride jerseys in warmups. The board of governors decided that teams would not be allowed to wear theme jerseys in warmups this season, later clarifying that would include Pride tape.
Asked about the NHL’s choice to ban Pride tape, star Colorado Avalanche defenseman Cale Makar called it an “interesting decision.”
“We’re put in tough positions as athletes,” Makar said. “When one individual kind of goes astray, it kind of looks bad on the whole community. For us — 99 percent of the guys in the league — it’s all about growing the game and making sure it’s inclusive for every single guy. … I get what the NHL is trying to do. They’re trying to take out that individual thinking and helping the league in terms of not putting any solo guy in that spot.
“At the same time, we live in a world where it needs to be inclusive for everybody. … As an individual, with my point of view, I’m here to make the game as inclusive as possible. Whether it’s doing different theme nights — military, Pride night — I think everything has a special meaning, regardless of who it’s for.”
In a brief interview with The Athletic in Seattle, Makar said he understood that the NHL doesn’t want players facing backlash as some did last season for not wearing Pride jerseys, “but at the same time, that’s their choice.”
“The tough part in media is now those guys’ choices reflect everything on the league,” he added. “That’s kind of the hard point. Like I said, 99.9 percent of the league doesn’t feel like that. To have those guys do that, it’s a little bit of a cheap shot for everybody else, knowing that people are like, ‘We’re taking a step back.’
“In my mind, I think we just keep moving forward. There are a lot more things we could be doing, but it’s unfortunate that that stuff is still where it’s at. You see one guy take his perspective out of line, and everybody gets associated with that. It’s unfortunate, but at the same time, I think a lot of heads in the league are in the right spot where we want to grow the game for good reasons.”
Makar’s thoughts open this week’s observations column, which covers Colorado’s wins against Seattle, Chicago and Carolina. The team is off to a 5-0-0 start.
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In honor of Alexandar Georgiev’s career shutout total, I have 14 observations this week.
1. The offseason didn’t ease any of the Seattle fans’ disdain for Makar, who was suspended a game in last season’s playoffs for a high hit on Kraken forward Jared McCann. He was booed the moment he first touched the puck in Seattle, and those jeers continued throughout the game.
“I put myself in a spot where that’s going to happen for however long it is,” Makar said. ‘You’ve got to reap the consequences of that. Looking back on it, obviously I never want to put myself in a position like that. That’s on me. But at the end of the day, you just have to bite the pill and take it.”
Makar got the last laugh in Seattle, assisting a Logan O’Connor short-handed goal in Colorado’s 4-1 win.
2. As a former Montreal assistant, Chicago coach Luke Richardson had an up-close look at Artturi Lehkonen, who in 2021 scored one of the biggest goals in recent Canadiens history: an overtime winner to send Montreal to the Stanley Cup Final. The Avalanche traded for Lehkonen the next season, and he once again scored an overtime goal to send his team to the Cup Final. Then, against Tampa Bay, he scored the game-winning goal in the clinching Game 6.
“He’s not just a big scorer in big games,” Richardson said. “He’s a complete hockey player.”
The coach called Lehkonen the type of player coaches love and noted that Colorado quickly decided to sign him to a multiyear deal in restricted free agency. The Avalanche knew what they had.
“He just rises to the occasion,” the coach said. “He’s not the biggest guy, but he plays big and he’ll block shots. He’s the ultimate team guy that really complements high-end skill players but also can do a really good job with the workers on the penalty kill, in the D-zone.”
Lehkonen is up to six points in five games this season after a four-point night against Carolina.
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3. While Chicago was in town, defenseman Seth Jones got to see his brother, Caleb, who is on the Colorado Eagles in the AHL. The two had dinner together.
The younger Jones brother came to the Avalanche organization in a trade with Carolina and figures to get NHL time at some point this season. He played a career-high 73 games with Chicago in 2022-23.
“He’s a great skater,” Seth said when asked what his brother could show at the NHL level. “I think he’s been a lot more aggressive in the last couple years in his defensive play, and then he’s got some offensive ability as well. Decent finisher around the net. Hopefully he can just be a steady guy.”
Colorado called up defenseman Corey Schueneman for its upcoming three-game road trip, but all six defensemen are healthy, so he might not play. Jones, meanwhile, will continue to get game action with the Eagles.
4. Jeremy Hanzel, whom Colorado drafted in the sixth round this summer, had a strong training camp with the Avalanche before getting sent back to the Seattle Thunderbirds in the WHL. At 20 years old, he was an older draft pick, which was perhaps why Colorado was able to nab him later in the draft.
Chicago defenseman Kevin Korchinski, the No. 7 pick in 2022, played with Hanzel for three seasons in Seattle. The two won a WHL championship last season, and Korchinski raved about Hanzel. He was surprised his friend slid so far in the draft.
“He was huge for us winning the championship,” Korchinski said. “He was one of if not our best player in the playoffs. He’s a player who I’d say is pretty pro-ready now. He’s strong. Does a bit of everything.”
Hanzel likely could have started the season in the AHL, but Colorado has a plethora of minor-league defensemen. Playing time would have been hard to come by. Avalanche coach Jared Bednar liked his training camp, saying he didn’t look out of place.
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5. Chicago phenom Connor Bedard was, unsurprisingly, the center of attention heading into the Blackhawks-Avalanche game. He has some familiarity with Avalanche players, having skated with Makar and Nathan MacKinnon at the BioSteel camp this summer. He said both were good to him there.
MacKinnon and Bedard are both centers, and Bedard said he tries to pick stuff up from the older star.
“He’s so powerful, so fast,” he said. “You try to work toward that. All the best players in the world you can take something from.”
6. MacKinnon knows what it’s like to be the top pick in a draft, having gone No. 1 in 2013. But he was quick to note his experience was nothing close to what has faced Bedard, who is widely regarded as a generational talent and has been a staple of early-season national hockey broadcasts.
“Even 10, 11 years ago, the social media wasn’t like it is today,” MacKinnon said. “We weren’t on ESPN. It wasn’t such a national game back then, from what I remember. Maybe it was, but it feels like a bigger spotlight now for him.”
The Avalanche star also noted he “wasn’t as good as” Bedard. There was much less hoopla.
“I wasn’t even supposed to be picked first until the week before the draft,” MacKinnon said. “It was easy.”
7. Bedard had a tough game against the Avalanche, failing to register a shot. One Avalanche fan took a chance to talk some trash during a stoppage video board segment. With Colorado up 2-0, the fan won a cooler in a giveaway contest, and the arena emcee handed him the microphone, expecting him to give the crowd a “Go, Avs, go!” chant. Instead, the person yelled, “Take notes, Bedard!” The emcee quickly took the microphone back.
8. Bednar has experimented with Colorado’s lines in the past few games. He moved Jonathan Drouin to the third line against Chicago and liked what he saw. Drouin made an excellent backdoor pass to Miles Wood, which Wood tapped the puck into the net. Unfortunately for Colorado, Drouin was barely offside during the Avalanche’s zone entry. Richardson challenged, and the goal came off the board. Asked if he can get any confidence from a good play that ends up voided, Drouin said, “You’ll take half the positive in there because it doesn’t really count.”
Drouin has generated good chances — Petr Mrazek robbed him in the Chicago game — but he doesn’t have a goal since the season opener in Los Angeles. Colorado still has more than 50 percent of the expected goal share when he’s on the ice, according to Natural Stat Trick.
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9. Injured Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog was at the home opener against the Blackhawks. The crowd gave him a massive ovation during player introductions before the game.
Huge ovation for injured captain Gabriel Landeskog during player introductions pic.twitter.com/I6l3MsflSr
— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) October 20, 2023
10. The team still doesn’t have an update on injured goalie Pavel Francouz’s timeline. Asked if the lower-body injury could be season-ending, Bednar said he doesn’t know.
“He’s out until I get notice that he’s even close to coming back,” the coach said.
No timeline is generally not a great sign.
11. Standout Carolina defenseman Jaccob Slavin, a Colorado native, got to see lots of family while in town. His dad picked him up from the airport, and he got to have a home-cooked meal with his family.
12. Carolina acquired forward Cal Burke in the Caleb Jones trade with Colorado. But since the Hurricanes don’t have an AHL team, they loaned Burke back to the Eagles, so he’s been able to stay in Colorado.
“They actually pulled me off practice with the Eagles and were like, ‘Hey, you got traded, but don’t worry. You’re staying with the Eagles so you can go back on the ice now,’” Burke said. “It’s a unique situation, for sure.”
While dealing with injuries, the Hurricanes called up Burke to play against the Avalanche. The Carolina equipment managers made sure to have some fun with his addition to the NHL roster, giving him a locker name tag that said only “New Guy.”
Cal Burke’s first Carolina locker is incredible pic.twitter.com/ZmTQ3cjtyq
— Peter Baugh (@Peter_Baugh) October 21, 2023
“That was funny,” Burke said. “I was trying to find my name and was like, ‘That one’s probably mine.'”
13. Bowen Byram is off to a tough start. He has 14 penalty minutes through five games, and Bednar acknowledged he’s “struggling a little bit.”
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“We all know what type of player he can be,” the coach said. “He can be a dominant player. Right now he’s not there. … He’s struggling with the foot speed of the game, his reads, his timing is off. That’s why he’s getting caught with some penalties. He’s reaching in. He’s not using his feet enough. So he’s got to find a way to get himself going and respond, and we’ll help him any way we can. Obviously the first handful of games are nowhere near what he’s capable of.”
Given the player the 22-year-old Byram has shown himself to be over his first few seasons, the start isn’t a huge source of concern. But his play is definitely worth monitoring.
14. Fredrik Olofsson, who is off to a good start as the fourth-line center, mentioned recently that he wanted to contribute offensively. He got his wish against Carolina, perfectly placing a shot past Pyotr Kochetkov.
“He’s done so well this year,” O’Connor said. “(Andrew Cogliano) and I really like playing with him. His game has evolved. Every game he’s getting more confident. Playing with more speed. Playing with more of his instincts, and it’s great to see him get rewarded with a great shot.”
(Photo of Cale Makar: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
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