Hockey Canada and Barrett Hayton issue a statement following anthem controversy at the World Juniors.

Hockey Canada responds.

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HockeyFeed
Published 4 years ago
Hockey Canada and Barrett Hayton issue a statement following anthem controversy at the World Juniors.

Considering the buzz that this has caused it comes as no surprise that Hockey Canada has been quick to issue a response and no doubt we will continue to hear more about this as the tournament plays out moving forward. 

For those of you who missed it the Canadians were embarrassed by the Russians on Saturday during the International Ice Hockey Federation's annual tournament and it seems like some of them may have taken that loss to heart. The Canadians were soundly defeated by a score of 6 - 0 and although that in and of itself would be a shocking result for the Canadians, it was what came after the convincing loss that is now making all of the headlines. 

Traditionally after a game at the tournament players from both countries will line up at their respective blue lines and remove their helmets during the playing of the national anthem. It is an entirely uncontroversial part of the spectacle that is the IIHF's annual tournament but this time around it did in fact turn into something of an issue. You see during the playing of the Russian anthem the players representing Russia took issue with the fact that Canada's captain, Barrett Hayton, refused to remove his helmet as the anthem played. They took so much of an issue with it in fact that Russia's own captain left the blue line during the anthem to complain to the officials who were standing at center ice, however they took no action. I suspect the inaction here was actually the result of the fact that there is no real rule prohibiting this kind of behavior. 

Either way it was more than enough to rub the Russian players the wrong way as when it came time for the ceremonial handshake at the end of the game, there were no handshakes forthcoming for Barrett Hayton from the Russia players who felt insulted by his actions. It would have been a bad look for a Canadian player even at the best of times, but coming off the heels of arguably the most embarrassing loss in the history of the World Junior Championship it made Hayton look extremely petty. 


Hockey Canada has now responded and has issued the following statement:

Hockey Canada has tremendous respect for the Russian Ice Hockey Federation, its players, coaches, management and fans. We expect our athletes and staff to share and show that same respect. Following today's game against Russia at the IIHF World Junior Championship, Barrett Hayton did not remove his helmet for the playing of the Russian national anthem. Hockey Canada apologizes to the IIHF, the Russian Ice Hockey Federation and all Canadians for this incident.

It seems clear to me that Hockey Canada realizes how poorly Hayton's actions were received in his home country with many Canadians expressing their outrage at the fact that Hayton had embarrassed the country on an international stage. For what it is worth Hayton himself issued a statement and appeared to suggest that it was a mental lapse and not any malice on his part that caused the incident. 

"I'm sorry for leaving my helmet on for the Russian anthem following today's game and I apologize to the Russian team and its fans. As a leader on this team, I was trying to process the game and evaluate how we can regroup. I was lost in the moment. The Russians played a great game tonight and my actions were not intended to be disrespectful. My mistake should not detract from their win. I owe it to my team and all Canadians to be better."

Do you accept his apology?


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