Following the death of George Floyd, and the subsequent protests that have felt close to a full-blown revolution, many athletes have taken the time to reflect on racism within their respective sports. Today, P.K. Subban, one of the prominent Black players in the National Hockey League, took to social media to make a statement of his own. 

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"Change the game," begins P.K. "I've been wearing it on my hat for years, every time I go to work. What does "Change The Game" mean? It means change the narrative. The narrative has been the same. No justice. There needs to be justice, justice has to happen. But we need everyone to look at our lives and see where we can help that change and do our part. I am committed to that, I am committed to that through and through." 

"I want to draw my attention to Gianna," continues Subban. "George Floyd's six-year-old daughter. I know she has a GoFundMe Page. This morning I donated $50,000 to her GoFundMe page. Reached out to the NHL and NHL commissioner Gary Bettman, and they have matched $50 Thousand. So I want to reach out, anyone who can donate, please."

It's no secret that racism has been present within the NHL, with players like Devonte Smith-Pelley and Wayne Simmonds previously vocalizing their troubling experiences dealing with it. Following the death of George Floyd, many players like Sidney Crosby, Shea Weber, Logan Couture, and Blake Wheeler have issued statements, with Crosby maintaining that "it cannot be ignored." Check out Subban's pledge below, and to all the hockey fans out there in the comments, look for the season to return before long. 

Edmonton Oilers forward Colby Cave died Saturday after suffering a brain bleed.

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Cave’s wife, Emily, confirmed the news in a statement sent to ESPN:

It is with great sadness to share the news that our Colby Cave passed away this morning. Both our families are in shock but know our Colby was loved dearly by us, his family and friends, the entire hockey community and many more. We thank everyone for their prayers during this difficult time.

Cave was put in a medically induced coma after enduring emergency surgery to remove a colloid cyst. He was 25-years-old.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman released a statement Saturday, commenting on the loss:

The National Hockey League family mourns the heartbreaking passing of Colby Cave, whose life and hockey career, though too short, were inspiringly emblematic of the best of our game. Undrafted but undaunted, Colby was relentless in the pursuit of his hockey dream with both the Edmonton Oilers and Boston Bruins organizations. An earnest and hardworking player, he was admired by his teammates and coaches. More important, he was a warm and generous person who was well-liked by all those fortunate enough to know him. We send our heartfelt condolences to his wife Emily, their families and Colby’s countless friends throughout the hockey world.

Emily was unable to visit her husband prior to his death due to COVID-19 restrictions.

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Donald Trump held a special conference call with pretty well every single major league sports commissioner in the United States on Saturday. During the call, he spoke to them about whether or not they will be able to get back to their respective leagues, any time soon. According to the likes of ESPN's Adam Schefter and Adrian Wojnarowski, leagues were told that they will be able to have fans in their stadiums as soon as August or September.

This is interesting news although it doesn't answer whether or not leagues can play without fans, prior to that time frame. In addition to this news, President Trump told Roger Goodell that he can expect the NFL season to start on time in September, which should be great news for sports fans.

Hockey is a dangerous sport by virtue of the fact that all of the players are wearing blades on their feet. When you add in the crushing body checks and fights, you are given a sport that doles out a ton of punishment to its players. With that being said, accidents tend to happen and when they do, they can be pretty scary. Last night, one of those instances occurred as the Montreal Canadiens played the New York Islanders. At one point, Johnny Boychuk of the Islanders was skating through his crease when Artturi Lehkonen of the Habs, fell over and his skate when the air. The skate slashed Boychuk in the face who dropped to the ice in shock.

Immediately after, Boychuk rushed off of the ice with his hand over his eye. Some were worried that the skate cut his eyeball but for now, no one knows for sure as the Islanders have yet to release an update. One reporter stated that Boychuk only got cut on his eyelid. 

Back in 2018, the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League made waves when they introduced their mascot Gritty to the world. Gritty became a social media sensation thanks to his bizarre orange look that had children scared and Twitter dwellers hysterical. Over the past year, Gritty has become incredibly popular in Philadelphia although now, the mascot is being investigated by police over an alleged incident that happened with a fan.

According to Yahoo! Sports, Gritty punched a 13-year-old fan in the back during a meet-and-greet event. As the story goes, Brandon Greenwell touched the mascot’s head and that’s when Gritty ran after the child and punched them in the back. The Greenwells and the Flyers have yet to reach a settlement so now, Greenwell’s father is taking the incident to police and it is now being investigated.

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The Flyers are claiming there were no witnesses and that they have conducted an investigation of their own. An apology was sent to the Greenwell family and they were offered a way to remedy the situation. For now, it seems as though the Greenwells are unhappy with the Flyers’ response and that’s why the authorities are involved.

Perhaps a police investigation can give both sides the closure they need. We’re sure all of Gritty Mafia is going through a tough time right now.