Video appears to show Blackhawks’ Shaw directing homophobic slur at officials

Chicago Blackhawks winger Andrew Shaw appeared to use a homophobic slur in the late stages of Game 4 after being assessed an interference penalty. The Blackhawks teamed with You Can Play, an organization committed to equality, to release a video in early April.

Blackhawks winger Andrew Shaw could find himself facing supplemental discipline after he was caught using what appears to be a homophobic slur during Tuesday’s broadcast of Game 4 between Chicago and the St. Louis Blues.

Shaw’s penalty, and the subsequent vitriol towards the officiating crew, came with 2:04 remaining in the third period. After the Blackhawks had drawn within one with little more than five minutes remaining, Shaw took an incredibly ill-advised interference minor and left Chicago down a man with time winding down. As he skated to the penalty box, Shaw made a middle-finger gesture to the referees, yelled about the penalty call and then appeared to shout a homophobic slur at the crew. It was caught by the Blues broadcast.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zG-zcrZnQw[/embed]

Following the game, the Chicago Tribune’s Chris Kuc asked Shaw about his actions following the penalty call. The Blackhawks winger said he couldn’t be certain of what he said when he was in the penalty box.

“I mean, emotions are high, I really don’t know what’s said,” Shaw told Kuc. “I was obviously upset with the call being that late in the game (as) it doesn’t give us a chance to tie it up.”

When asked again, Shaw again said he couldn’t remember what he had said.

The video of Shaw quickly spread across social media, and You Can Play, an organization committed to “ensuring equality, respect and safety for all athletes, without regard to sexual orientation and/or gender identity,” commented on Shaw’s possible slur. “We are aware of tonight's incident and will be reaching out to the NHL immediately to assist in an appropriate response,” the organization wrote on its official Twitter account.

You Can Play has worked with a number of NHL organizations and is a partner of the league and NHLPA. The Blackhawks are one organization that has teamed with You Can Play, and Chicago’s Scott Darling and Niklas Hjalmarsson appeared in a video supporting the organization’s mission on April 3.