Why doesn't the NHL have stars with personality like LeBron James or Conor McGregor?

[solidmotion]

most hockey players are canadian. most canadians are boring. qed

 

[WarriorofTime]

Because people get whiny if someone steps out of line and shows a bit of that. People whine about Trevor Zegras being a cocky and disrespectful American for crying out loud, lol.

 

[Chainshot]

Every time hockey players show some personality, they get dogpiled. It doesn't matter if they are modern or a throw-back, progressive or traditionalist, etc.... someone cross-section of fans is going to hate what they say/do/wear/act.

 

[WarriorofTime]

most hockey players are canadian. most canadians are boring. qed

Less than half (aka "most") these days but still the predominant influence in the "culture", I remember Don Cherry going on a big rant about Ovechkin early in his career for celebrating goals and saying this isn't soccer and it's not the Canadian way. These days Cherry is a dinosaur but back then I bet a lot of people agreed with it

 

[WaitingForThatCab]

NHL Stars take a page from Lebron James' playbook, begin picking up books in the locker room and only reading the first page of each

 

[Soundwave]

most hockey players are canadian. most canadians are boring. qed

Look at all these boring bastards.

 

[BrokenFace]

For McGregor, I don't think personality types that outlandish work in many team sports at the highest levels. For Lebron, the NHL already has lots of guys who quietly go about being amazing at their sport while being criticized for stupid little things that don't matter. Outside of when I put his foot in his mouth with the China/Hong Kong thing, Lebron is as agreeable as you average NHL star.

 

[Oneiro]

It's not that the humble and low-key stuff from hockey players is boring.

It's that it's often more fake and removed from reality than being a real person. "Good old boy" BSing.

 

[Golden_Jet]

I mean stars who act like stars. LeBron calls himself The King; why can't McDavid do that? I would love to see an active NHL superstar start firing on Twitter the way McGregor does. Go to a presser in a three piece suit and sunglasses and start talking shit. Spice the game up a bit, you know? Too many of these guys are scripted ChatCPT robots and I can see why it's hard for the casual fan to get invested.

What do you think? Is it just a cultural thing with hockey where everyone has to speak in tired cliches and never, ever rock the boat? Why are there so few entertaining characters in the game?

LeBron does nothing lol, wow he calls himself king, who cares about the criminal MacGregor, change channel when he comes on.

It's a fair point that basketball attracts charismatic athletes.

McGregor is kind of a one off. There are other brash fighters, but no one else has combined his skill and charisma in MMA history.

lol weird definition of charisma.

 

[Channelcat]

What's wrong with just appreciating the game?

 

[WaitingForThatCab]

What's wrong with just appreciating the game?

Doesn't appeal to 'casual fans.'

 

[EurlichBachman]

James Reimer, the Stalls, and Provorov are reasons why players just stay on script. whats the point of shining a light on yourself only to have twitter and the rest of social media dissect it?

Look at Jordan Binnington. People across the league hate the guy. Having a personality in hockey just isnt worth it.

 

[BLNY]

Connor McGregor doesn't have personality. He's an a$$hole.

 

[JackSlater]

What personality does Lebron have? He's not Conor McGregor. Conor McGregor on the other hand is part of an individualistic sport with shades of WWE, whereas Lebron is part of a team, and he's mostly known for being an amazing basketball player, not his personality.

That's pretty much what my first thought was. LeBron James? Whose personality traits have generally been what... nice guy who has, by this point, spent most of his life on a pedestal.

 

[solidmotion]

Look at all these boring bastards.

ah yes how could i forget there are only 11 canadians and they are all celebrities. truly canadians are gods among men

 

[Golden_Jet]

ah yes how could i forget there are only 11 canadians and they are all celebrities. truly canadians are gods among men

Nice your catching on, keep up the good work.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Because hockey culture reveres the good ol hard working humble farm boy style -- quiet, heavy hitting, team above all -- and anyone dare show an ounce of anything that would be seen as individualistic, they're going to be shamed in front of the world and behind the scenes until they fall in line.

I mean even McDavid looks scared shitless to speak his mind in front of a single camera, and that guy in any other sport would have carte blanche to do body shots off his teammates mid game while wearing only a flamboyant scarf and stunner shades.

Obviously hockey can and should embrace a happy medium, but these guys are trained to be robots from a young age. Bless the Ovechkins and Doughtys of the world for trying to shed that, but look how much they get blasted even around here for simply opening their mouths

 

[Coffey]

Bless the Ovechkins and Doughtys of the world for trying to shed that, but look how much they get blasted even around here for simply opening their mouths

Bingo.

For ever person that wants personality in the league, there are 20 others that will tell them to shut up and skate.

 

[HarrySPlinkett]

It's not that the humble and low-key stuff from hockey players is boring.

It's that it's often more fake and removed from reality than being a real person. "Good old boy" BSing.

Fundamentally, being interesting does nothing to advance your career.

These guys are not paid to be interesting - they are only famous because of their athletic ability. If they couldn’t skate, they’d be working on a farm or the oil patch or construction.

This isn’t a sport where the refs are going to save you from violence - everyone who ever hoisted the trophy went through as bad or worse treatment. It’s supposed to be hard, and it’s supposed to hurt.

So with that in mind, why give a team extra reason to do you harm that’s not going to be dealt with unless you or a teammate answer the bell? Unless you’re a Tkachuk or Marchand who thrives on that, You’ll just put a bigger target on your back and your team at a disadvantage.

So keep your mouth shut. If they can’t find you, they can’t dislike you.

 

[Finlandia WOAT]

LeBron James is infamous for his lack of personality.

 

[Kaiden Ghoul]

Look at all these boring bastards.

Leslie Nielson also

 

[HarrySPlinkett]

Bingo.

For ever person that wants personality in the league, there are 20 others that will tell them to shut up and skate.

It’s also a sport where stars have less of an impact on the outcome.

You have the two best players in basketball, you’re in the finals every year.

You have the two best players in hockey and you can still go nearly five full calendar years without winning a playoff game, which the McDrai Oilers have 100% done

The Hart trophy winner hasn’t won the Stanley cup since Joe Sakic in 2002.

Imagine that in basketball.

 

[Stubu]

I mean stars who act like stars. LeBron calls himself The King; why can't McDavid do that? I would love to see an active NHL superstar start firing on Twitter the way McGregor does. Go to a presser in a three piece suit and sunglasses and start talking shit. Spice the game up a bit, you know? Too many of these guys are scripted ChatCPT robots and I can see why it's hard for the casual fan to get invested.

What do you think? Is it just a cultural thing with hockey where everyone has to speak in tired cliches and never, ever rock the boat? Why are there so few entertaining characters in the game?

I guess it's because the NHL stars have already seen that for example Evander Kane's delusions of grandeur at various stages weren't so great for his career. Then, the closest to Conor McGergor's personality might be Tom Wilson. I'm not sure someone like Connor McDavid would want to be so hated around the league, by other players and fanbases alike. (I'll note though that this hasn't hurt Wilson's career; on the contrary.) If you mean just social media stuff, well, Tony D'Angelo sort of tried being provocative, and lost most of a season.

So maybe it's mostly because they've simply already seen that megalomania or disrespect won't benefit them. NHL does have some outstanding positive personalities who are very well regarded and respected most everywhere. But maybe that's not as "entertaining" in this day and age. (I'm not trying to sound grumpy... lol)

 

[BMacLeafs]

First of all, NHL players are not humble. They are the epitome of entitled brats who have gotten whatever they wanted since they were little kids.

Second, ppl want diversity. The NHL's multiple shades of white don't count. This lack of diversity also indicates the reluctance to speak out on important issues (e.g. LeBron James or Colin Kaepernick.)

Most notably, the NHL trains its players to become robots in interviews. They may have some personality, but there are stiff penalties for showing it.

 

[Jedub]

First of all, NHL players are not humble. They are the epitome of entitled brats who have gotten whatever they wanted since they were little kids.

Second, ppl want diversity. The NHL's multiple shades of white don't count. This lack of diversity also indicates the reluctance to speak out on important issues (e.g. LeBron James or Colin Kaepernick.)

Most notably, the NHL trains its players to become robots in interviews. They may have some personality, but there are stiff penalties for showing it.

This is the truth. They all say the same thing the same way because they're coached to, and a big reason theyre coached to is so no one knows what "fun" they really like to get up to.