E.J. Hradek suggests Ivan Provorov return to his own country

NHL Network analyst E.J. Hradek is making the waves for some recent eye-opening comments that he directed towards Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Ivan Provorov in the wake of the controversy stemming from his declining to wear a pride-themed jersey during warmups on Tuesday night. 

By now, you've likely heard of the incident that took place at Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday, which was the Flyers' annual celebration of LGBT Pride Night; players wore rainbow-themed warmup jerseys while several players applied rainbow tape to their sticks. However, Provorov was notably absent during the warmup; he confirmed that he declined to wear the pride jersey owing to his Russian Orthodox religious beliefs. Head coach John Tortorella also defended Provorov's choice, stating that he stayed true to himself. 

And while there's been an outpouring of reaction on both sides of the issue from fans and pundits alike, some rather stunning comments came through from Hradek during a segment on the NHL Network earlier today. Essentially, Hradek told Provorov, who is Russian, to go back to his own country - and even to go get involved in the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine. 

“Ivan Provorov can get on a plane any day he wants and go back to a place where he feels more comfortable, take less money, and get on with his life that way if it’s that problematic for him,” Hradek said.

“If this is that much of a problem for him to maybe assimilate into his group of teammates and in the community and here in this country; that’s okay,” he said. “Listen you can feel any way you want, but the beauty is, if it bothers you that much, there’s always a chance to leave.”

“Go back where you feel more comfortable. I understand there’s a conflict going on over there; maybe get involved.”

This may end up being Hradek's "you people" moment that got legendary Hockey Night in Canada host Don Cherry shown the door from CBC in 2019.