NHL’s McDavid, Stamkos Disagree With League’s Specialty Jersey Ban, Which Includes Pride Night Sweaters: ‘It’s Disappointing’

The NHL's ban on specialty warm-up jerseys remains a hot-button issue, and now a pair of the league's biggest stars — Edmonton's Connor McDavid and Tampa's Steven Stamkos — have spoken out against the league's decision.

"It's disappointing to see," McDavid said following the NHL Awards, per Daily Mail. "It's not my call, but obviously it's disappointing."

"I certainly can't speak for every organization," the Hart Memorial Trophy winner added. "I know in Edmonton, we were one of the first teams to use the Pride tape.

"We strongly feel hockey is for everybody, and that includes the Pride nights."

It's worth noting, the NHL isn't banning Pride Nights. Players just won't wear the special Pride jerseys for warm-ups. Jerseys that teams are still free to design and sell, and players who want to model them are welcome to.

Tampa Bay Lightning captain appeared to point to media coverage for the "distraction" that led to the NHL's ban on specialty warm-up jerseys. (Photo by Mark LoMoglio/NHLI via Getty Images)

Stamkos Points To Media For Pride Night Jersey 'Distractions

As for Stamkos, he said that most players in the league were more than happy to throw on the jerseys.

"It was 98 percent or 99 percent of other players that wore the jersey and enjoyed wearing it and were proud wearing it, whatever jersey it was, whether it was the Pride, the military night, the cancer nights," Stamkos said.

He's right. The overwhelming majority of players gladly through on the specialty jerseys. There were only a handful of players who opted not to wear them.

So then where did the problem come from? Well, that would be progressive media outlets that pounced on those guys and made them the story instead of focusing on the other players who supported the cause.

"The story shouldn't be about the guy that didn't wear it, the one guy or the two guys," Stamkos said. "I understand that's what gets the clicks and that's what gets the views, but the word 'distraction' gets thrown around.

"I don't think it had to have been a distraction. It could have been a non-issue while focusing on the good that was coming out of those nights."

Stamkos seems to get it. Had progressives harped on the handful of players who opted not to wear the jerseys based on their own beliefs? That's what turned the jerseys into a distraction.

Had those players been allowed to sit it out while the others who wanted to wear the jerseys went out and warmed up in them, there'd have been no problem.

But that's not enough for progressives. Everyone must comply, and that attitude has routinely been a detriment to their causes.

The banning of specialty jerseys is just the latest example of that.

As we've seen time and time again, it's not about who supports these things, it's about who doesn't.

Follow on Twitter: @Matt_Reigle