James Reimer Doubles Down on His Boycott of the Pride Jerseys

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Aaron Itovitch
March 18, 2023 (9:26 PM)

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James Reimer made the controversial decision this afternoon to boycott his teams' pride jerseys. The backlash has been intense, and instead of apologizing he has doubled down.

Reimer Doubles Down

James Reimer tarnished his legacy today as he opted to boycott the San Jose Sharks pride jerseys. The Sharks are at the forefront of the pride movement, which made this especially disappointing.

In an interview after his announcement, he doubled down, and accepted that this decision could affect his future.

SOME PEOPLE ARE GOING TO THINK DIFFERENTLY OF YOU... THOUGHTS ON THAT?

At the end of the day, you can't worry too much about what other people think about you. If you take the analogy back to hockey, people think I suck as a goalie in some games and some people love me right? I have played long enough to know that you can only trust the people in your circle, what they say about you. When someone you trust says you didn't play well, you take it to heart right. When someone you don't trust says it, you kind of just let it slide off your back. So with this the premise is similar. The only difference is that they can think differently of me and that's their own opinion, or, they're free to say and think whatever they want. That is 100 percent their right. I just hope that deep down or to some extent they just understand that I truly do love everyone that I come into contact with and I fail miserably sometimes. But I strive to live a life like Christ where you love people. And I hope that they know that there's a God that loves them and John 3:16 - (he) sent his son to die and that there's a deep love for him.

AS A FREE AGENT, ARE YOU CONCERNED ABOUT YOUR FUTURE?

I mean, I think I'd be lying if I said that wasn't something that crossed my mind honestly. I'll go back to what I said. This is not a stance that I was looking to make. I saw this happening and we started conversations almost a year ago with people in high places. Not because I'm ashamed of my faith, but because of certain consequences that could have for me or other people that feel this way. Those conversations happened, and here I am standing up for what I believe in. I'm sure there's people in management or ownership that won't look favorably on this. And I get that and I understand it and respect everyone's right to think and believe whatever they want about me. But at the same time, I hope that there's another handful of people in management and in ownership that respect me for standing up for what I believe in and that's a big part of who I am. The people that know me well, every team knows that I give my all every day. That's part of my personal convictions again, from the Bible, is to do everything with all your heart. When I go on the ice, I give it everything. When I go in the gym, I give it everything. When I go home, I give it everything. Yeah, this is something that people might fell negatively about. But my faith in Christ is who I am and that's what makes me the competitor and the loyal teammate that I am to.

If he doesn't get a contract next season, it most likely won't be because of his old-fashioned social views, but because of his dwindling gameplay.

Either way, James Reimer lost a lot of fans today.