Colorado Avalanche: Hockey Is for the Latino Community Too

February not only marks the beginning of the playoff push for most teams but it’s also “Hockey Is For Everyone” month, and the Colorado Avalanche could make a huge difference if they wanted to.

The NHL’s Hockey Is For Everyone initiative aims to make this beautiful sport an inclusive one, and names one ambassador per team to “promote the League’s broad diversity and inclusive initiatives” throughout the month (in this case, our ambassador for the Colorado Avalanche is Colin Wilson). The initiative has been heavily criticised and with good reason: it’s not as inclusive as it should.

The initiative tends to focus on only one or two minorities, and as much as we appreciate it, there’s much more the league can do to truly be inclusive. How about the Latino community, NHL?

First off, there are Latino players in the league (Nadia has already addressed this in-depth), so why not naming them ambassadors for HIFE month? Because, let me tell you: none of these year’s ambassadors are Latino or of Latino descent. Don’t be scared to truly embrace diversity, my dear National Hockey League.

The Colorado Avalanche could have done their part by having Matt Nieto as ambassador, but they let that opportunity pass (please take note for the future, Avs). Not that Colin Wilson can’t do his part to support the Latino community, but it would work much better if the ambassador is an actual representative of this group.

For hockey to be truly for everyone as the league preaches, they should work on this all season long and not just for one month. And, most importantly, in other areas as well. Host a Latino Heritage Night, bring Latino announcers, reporters, hosts, broadcast games in Spanish – a significant amount of the population in both the US and Canada are Latino, so it’s not like there isn’t an audience for broadcasts in Spanish.

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Not to mention all Latino hockey fans outside the US and Canada. Yes, it’s real. Yes, we love hockey even though we don’t have teams over here (Mexico). No, games are not broadcasted here like they are with our Northern neighbors, but there are other ways. And yes, we feel kinda left out but we know this shouldn’t stop us from enjoying this sport.

Teams like the Los Angeles Kings are doing their part with a Latino Heritage Night, while teams like the Vegas Golden Knights, the Chicago Blackhawks, and again the Kings offer games in Spanish. The Colorado Avalanche could join the fun while also connecting (more) with their Latino fans and helping push the league to make it a league-wide (and season-long) practice. The more pressure, the better, right?

We know hockey is for everyone, because we live it that way. But until the NHL fully embraces it and not just focuses on one or two groups and just for one month a year, the initiative won’t feel totally honest and just like a PR/marketing strategy (business, business). Come on, Avs: Use your power and do some magic.

Here’s to hoping the league will take note on this and the (constructive) criticism this initiative gets, and I will keep my fingers crossed for our dear Colorado Avalanche to do their part in the near future. Until then, the Avs’ Hockey Is For Everyone night will take place on February 16.