ALLENTOWN, Pa. -- Have you ever wondered if hockey is for you? Well according to the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, “Hockey is for Everyone,” at least for the night of Feb. 11.
After hosting “Pride Nights” in previous years to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community, this year the Phantoms have expanded their focus to be inclusive of all marginalized identities in one night.
- The Lehigh Valley Phantoms' "Hockey is for Everyone" night will begin at 7:05 Feb. 11
- This event replaces Pride Night with an inclusive event for people of all marginalized groups
- A variety of groups were invited or offered free tickets to help celebrate "Hockey is for Everyone" night
Caitlin Burns, a spokesperson for the Phantoms, said, “While ‘Hockey is for Everyone’ is encompassing of pride, it's also all-encompassing of anything else. So that would be race, religion, national origin, age, gender identity or expression, disability, sexual orientation or socioeconomic status. So we really wanted to focus on the all-encompassing aspects of diversity within the sport.”
There is still some focus on LGBTQ+ pride however, as Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center is tabling with resources, and the proceeds from the 50/50 raffle will benefit the center as well.
As to how this partnership got started, Braden Hudak, communications coordinator for Bradbury-Sullivan said, “Four years ago, when the center had started the Health Needs Assessment and was collecting data on the queer population in Pennsylvania and the needs of our community, they [the Phantoms] took that as an opportunity to try and let the queer folks here in Allentown, and throughout the whole Lehigh Valley know that they are affirming and support us.
“It's a great opportunity for queer folks to go there and know that they're going to be safe and that they're going to, you know, see rainbows, see folks similar to them and have an affirming night while enjoying a sports game.”
"Hockey is for Everyone" night is more than pride, however.
A variety of groups were invited or offered free tickets, including the Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania; Special Hockey of Lehigh Valley; the Phantoms’ sled hockey team; the NAACP of Bethlehem, Easton and Allentown; Lehigh University’s The Pride Center; the Hispanic American Organization of the Lehigh Valley; Promise Neighborhoods of the Lehigh Valley; the Black Heritage Association of the Lehigh Valley and the Lehigh Valley Council for the Blind.
"We really wanted to focus on the all-encompassing aspects of diversity within the sport."Caitlin Burns, community and public relations manager for the Lehigh Valley Phantoms
“This night incorporates Bradbury-Sullivan's pride night, but over the whole theme of the night, it's going to have a very wide range of lights shined on it. Something that we'll be adding, with it being Black History Month, is a segment about Black players that have played for the Phantoms here as well,” said Trevor Herrick, senior director of ticket sales for the Phantoms.
In past years players were offered rainbow-colored pride tape to tape up their sticks. It is unclear whether this will be the case this year.
In 2019 and 2020, there were player ambassadors to pride night, one of whom was Kurtis Gabriel, the first player to use rainbow-colored Pride tape on his stick during an NHL game. There is no player ambassador this year.
The puck will drop at “Hockey is for Everyone” at 7:05 p.m. Feb. 11 at the PPL Center in Allentown. The Phantoms will be playing against the Bridgeport Islanders.
