The first NHL player to kneel before the Minnesota Wild call of social justice, Matt Dumba, said he didn’t need to disrespect his moves on Saturday.
Dumba fell to his knees by the Star-Spangled Banner before the Edmonton Oilers and Chicago Blackhawks faced off in the first game of the Western Conference qualifying round. Before doing so, the 26-year-old delivered an impassioned speech about racism and acceptance in the game while wearing a sweatshirt from the Hockey Diversity Alliance.
“I know why I knelt and it’s by no means a sign of disrespect,” Dumba said at a conference call with reporters on Sunday, according to Sportsnet. “He’s kind to other people who have experienced injustice and oppression, especially in my state of Minnesota.”
Malcolm Subban of the Blackhawks and Darnell Nurse of the Oilers, also black, placed their hands on Dumba’s shoulders as he knelt.
Dumba’s only regret, he admitted, did not kneel before the Canadian national anthem, “O Canada.”
“He wants to be very kind to what’s happening in Canada and the oppression that First Nations has been experiencing for many years,” he said. “I have First Nations and Aboriginal families who have experienced it and I was disappointed to think about it.
In the future, Dumba will no longer be on her knees and raise her right arm in the air for any of the hymns.
“Something I can remain consistent with,” he told reporters. “When you talk to (your teammate J.T. Brown), if you’re not in this opening lineup, you may be on the bench and if I kneel on the bench, you may not see me.”
Three years ago, Brown, who was at the Tampa Bay Lightning, lifted his first national anthem to protest police brutality and racism.
And ahead of Wild’s 3-0 win over the Vancouver Canucks on Sunday, Dumba was in line with his fist to the sky.
Follow Chris Bumbaca on Twitter @BOOMbaca.