During the Blackhawks game Saturday night, Capitals forward Devante Smith-Pelly became visibly angry with some fans while serving a penalty following a fight with Blackhawks defenseman Conor Murphy.
Following the game it was reported by the Washington Post’s Isabelle Khurshudyan that the fans were making racially charged taunts at the African-American player and we’re ejected. The fans were chanting “basketball, basketball, basketball” when Smith-Pelly became upset. In the video he appears to alert the penalty box attendant and then points his stick in their direction while moving that way. An off-ice official confirmed what was happening and had the fans ejected. In an interview after the game (below), Capitals Head Coach Barry Trotz said that there is no room for this in hockey or in the country. He is absolutely correct and this comes just one game after the Blackhawks #HockeyIsForEveryone game. This is disgusting and these people should be ashamed of themselves. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you paid for your ticket, no one deserves to be stereotyped and taunted for their race. The Blackhawks released this statement following the game.
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