Photo Credit: Our very own Shaylah Rice
When thinking of the Flyers overall makeup of their team, some people think of some household names like Sean Couturier, Cam Atkinson, Carter Hart, and Travis Konecny all for good reasons. One name that doesn’t come to some peoples’ minds is Scott Laughton, “To play 400 games for the Flyers and be with this organization since 2012, it’s special to me and my family,” Laughton said following the Arizona Coyotes game over a year ago. “I love it here.” Last season he eclipsed playing in more than 500 NHL games, an accomplishment that’s quite impressive.
Laughton continues to be a strong pillar in the community, the LGBTQ community included, “You will probably see me with the pride tape on that night anyways. If they want to say something, they can,” Laughton said as the NHL previously banned players from even using pride tape during the course of the season. The keyword in the last sentence is previously, as the NHL has overruled their own ruling on this matter. Yesterday, the NHL rescinded their ban on using pride tape for the 2023-24 season, thus allowing players who want to use it to now be able to use it if they so choose.
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“Actively welcoming communities into hockey is imperative to keep the sport strong now and into the future,” You Can Play said in a statement. “We appreciate every person, team, and organization that made their voice heard to support this change and appreciate the NHL’s willingness to listen and make the right choice.” One of those said players is Scott Laughton. He’s been an advocate for the LGBTQ community, and he even hosted some LGBTQ Flyers fans at a a game at the Wells Fargo Center earlier this season.
“Me and JvR just left the locker room with 50 people from the community. It was a great night, great initiative. Amazing initiative, and something that’s been close to me for a long time, Reemer too. I’ll leave it at that.” – Scott Laughton said after Pride Night in January of 2023
Laughton has really stepped up as Captain like material. It’s great to see him take the next step in a leadership role, and it’s also great to see him be an advocate towards change in the community to get the NHL to rescind the ban on pride tape for the season.
