NHL News: Devante Smith-Pelly Says Racist Remarks by Some Fans During Game Were 'Disgusting' and 'Sad'
Devante Smith-Pelly of the Washington Capitals recently had to endure racist remarks by a small group of fans in Chicago. Later, the ice hockey player said that the incident was "disgusting" and "sad."
The Canadian ice hockey player and his team were playing against the home team, the Chicago Blackhawks, when at least four fans on the stands started yelling "basketball, basketball, basketball" at the time when Smith-Pelly was in the penalty box.
It may seem like a harmless taunt but reports explained that the word "basketball" suggested Smith-Pelly did not belong in the National Hockey League, where the majority of the athletes were white, and should be in a basketball league because of the color of his skin.
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During his team's practice on Sunday after they lost to the Blackhawks, 7-1, Smith-Pelly told reporters: "It's pretty obvious what that means. It's not really a secret. ... Whether it's that word or any other word, I got the idea. And I'm sure they got the idea, too. Just one word, and that's really all it takes."
The Capitals forward also recalled that it had happened before even to athletes he personally knew and added that it was sad how incidents like this kept coming up.
"It's disgusting," Smith-Pelly noted. "You'd think there would be some sort of change or progression, but we're still working toward it, I guess, and we're going to keep working toward it."
Meanwhile, Smith-Pelly got the support of Blackhawks officials as well as of the team's forward, Anthony Duclair, who was also black.
Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville said the racial slur from their fans was "totally unacceptable" in and outside of NHL. He also confirmed that he had personally reached out to Capitals head coach Barry Trotz and Smith-Pelly to apologize.
Duclair, meanwhile, said: "It's not ok. Whether it happens to Devante Smith-Pelly or a random person on the street, you should be comfortable in your own skin and gender and nationality or religion, your beliefs."
The Blackhawks organization has since banned the fans involved in the incident, who were also immediately ejected from the match, from any of the team's home games.
