My message to ice hockey fans and especially to those who value human life above an athlete’s career
Maybe this or next month Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL goal record will be equaled and broken, and a Russian citizen will become its new owner. Under normal circumstances, it would be completely irrelevant where the person comes from or what country he is a citizen of, and every hockey fan would celebrate this significant historical event. Unfortunately, however, this historical milestone is approaching at a time when the country of which this Russian hockey player is a citizen has been waging an imperialist war against a sovereign democratic country, Ukraine, for more than three years. And within the framework of this aggressive war, the Russian state is committing the most terrible crimes, including genocide against Ukrainian children.
In this context, it should be noted again that every citizen, unless he is a dissident who condemns the crimes of his country, is always, without exception, an advertisement for the actions of his country. That is simply a fact. Therefore, in the case of Russian citizens, every athlete who gets the opportunity to perform publicly is the best advertisement for the Russian imperialist war and all the crimes against humanity associated with this war.
If someone advertises this terrible war, it automatically means its escalation and many more people killed and maimed. Unfortunately, it is the NHL that provides this advertisement for insane atrocities. This is the reality of the current NHL, which in the world of sports, along with tennis, is the best advertisement for the Russian war. Yes, the current NHL is responsible for a huge number of lost and maimed lives. These are the facts.
And now I will return to the probable breaking of the scoring record by a Russian citizen. During the more than three years of Russian aggression, the NHL has consciously allowed all Russian hockey players to perform publicly. And this includes the player who is most likely to break this record. It is through this letter that I would like to ask you to realize that if you clap and applaud when a record is equaled or broken, then know that you are applauding not only the breaking of a given historical milestone, but also the most horrific Russian crimes, in which many hundreds of thousands, or rather more than a million people, were killed and maimed!
If the lives of people you do not know and with whom you probably cannot identify as much as the players of your beloved club are more important to you than the career and record of one athlete, it is very important that you act accordingly. Each of you, whether you are a smaller or larger NHL fan, can help the NHL stop spreading advertising Russian war and Russian crimes with your attitude.
By doing so, you can save many human lives. That is what I want to ask all of you.
And a few more important facts that I have already mentioned publicly several times, but I will repeat them again:
In more than 3 years, the NHL has not helped or allowed Russian players to officially condemn the Russian imperialist war. This means that even those Russian players who do not agree with the Russian aggression against Ukraine have not been given the opportunity by the NHL to officially distance themselves from the actions of their country. These hockey players will live the rest of their lives knowing that many people, including their fellow citizens, were maimed and killed because of their play.
In any case, the NHL has been making huge advertisement for the Russian war for more than 3 years and is responsible for a terrible number of lost lives. This advertisement is worth at least many tens of billions of dollars to Russia, and this amount needs to be paid to Ukraine.
Of course, the countries where the NHL was played and which allowed this advertising for the Russian war on their territory are also responsible for this advertising. That is, primarily the USA and Canada. But also the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland and Germany, which have allowed NHL teams matches on their territory. And in these matches, Russian players who did not condemn the Russian war appeared. These states must also contribute a certain fraction to the compensation of Ukraine. The NHL itself, with a revenue of about 6 billion dollars a year, cannot compensate for all the damage it has caused to Ukraine with its approach. Of course, it is necessary that those countries that have allowed advertising of the Russian war on their territory also contribute to the compensation.
In conclusion, I will repeat again that I am ready to board a plane to New York at any time and will do everything to help the NHL stop advertising for the Russian imperialist war and Russian crimes. And at the same time, I will be happy to help all Russian players who do not agree with this war.
Dominik Hašek