Sharks face ugly fallout after politically charged offensive message hits jumbotron at home

The San Jose Sharks are doing damage control after an embarrassing moment at SAP Center this weekend, and fans have been demanding answers.

During the first intermission of Saturday night’s game against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins, a message containing “offensive wording” somehow made its way onto the team’s jumbotron, prompting immediate backlash both inside the arena and online.

By the end of the night, the organization was forced to release a public statement addressing the situation:

“During the first intermission of tonight’s game, an offensively worded message which had been externally submitted was inadvertently displayed on the in-arena scoreboard,” the team said. “Sharks Sports & Entertainment deeply regrets that this message, which does not meet our organization’s values, was not detected during our standard review process. The Sharks organization sincerely apologizes for this oversight, and we are actively working to determine the origin of the message.”

The statement makes it clear the message, which read “San Jose Sharks fans love ICE. Get’em boyz” came from an outside source, meaning it likely slipped through the team’s submission system used for fan shout-outs or birthday messages. Still, many fans are wondering how something “offensively worded” could have passed the review process in the first place.

Clips of the moment began circulating online shortly after the game.

Whether it was a prank, a hack, or a major internal oversight, the Sharks are now investigating how it happened and who was behind it. Until then, fans are left shaking their heads and the organization is once again reminded that, in 2025, you have to double check everything that goes on the jumbotron.