Ivan Provorov of the NHL’s Philadelphia Flyers is facing harsh criticism from the woke left Twitter mob for his decision to not participate in an LGBTQ+ themed hockey warm up in a recent game against the Anaheim Ducks. 

“I respect everyone. I respect everybody’s choices. My choice is to stay true to myself and my religion,” Provorov said, citing his strong Russian Orthodox Christian beliefs as to why he did not participate.

And while many, including his coach and teammates, support his freedom of choice, the mainstream media is attacking him and using their prepared DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) word salads to do it. 

5 Minutes for not supporting the current thing

The Russian defenseman was the lone Flyer not to skate in warmups with the rest of the team’s players wearing jerseys featuring a rainbow pattern on the nameplate and numbers, as well as sticks wrapped in Pride-themed tape.

In a prepared statement, the Flyers didn’t mention the 26-year-old or his beliefs.

“The Philadelphia Flyers organization is committed to inclusivity and is proud to support the LGBTQ+ community,” the team said. “Many of our players are active in their support of local LGBTQ+ organizations, and we were proud to host our annual Pride Night again this year. The Flyers will continue to be strong advocates for inclusivity and the LGBTQ+ community.”

Flyers head coach John Tortorella explained his support for Provorov after the game.

“This has to do with his beliefs and his religion. That is one thing I respect about Provy, he is always true to himself, so that’s where we’re at with that.”

Tortorella thought it would be “unfair” to bench him for his beliefs.

This is just the latest NHL corporate overstep that has athletes like Provorov pushing back. The professional hockey league empire with an estimated value of $1.03 billion has been virtue signalling ad nauseam of late. The league recently held a special transgender and non-binary hockey tournament and later hosted a discriminatory job fair that was only open to specific racial demographics.

MORE athletes KICKING THE WOKE BALL OUT OF THE STADIUM

Provorov is just the latest in a winning lineup of professional athletes who are standing up against corporate virtue signalling. 

• Carli Lloyd, a former soccer player on Team USA, has criticized her former teammates for focusing more on “building a brand” than actually playing the beautiful game. 

• NWSL player Jaelene Daniels refused to wear a ‘gay pride’ jersey in a July match and was subsequently benched for the game.

• Orlando Magic player Jonathan Isaac never wore a Black Lives Matter shirt – and became the first NBA player to not kneel during the American national anthem.

• Ex-Virginia Tech soccer player Kiersten Hening was forced to quit the team for refusing to kneel for a pre game ‘unity statement.’

• Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha was the first Premier League player to refuse to take a knee in the league’s pre-match demonstration against racism saying kneeling has just become “a part of the pre-match routine and at the moment it doesn’t matter whether we kneel or stand, some of us still continue to receive abuse.” 

All the controversy has some sports insiders speculating that Provorov’s time in the big leagues may be coming to an end. “It’s possible that he’ll be traded or sent to the minors or shipped off to some Siberian bush league,” pitches GWU! Sports reporter Johnny Jock

“In fact when Colin Kaepernick took a knee to support BLM during NFL games he got nothing but respect. We’ll see if this Russian hockey player receives similar fair play and equality for taking a stand to not sit this woke culture game out.”