John Scott opens up about decision to play in All-Star Game

Throughout the entirety of the John Scott All-Star Game experience, we’ve all known the former San Jose Shark isn’t typically the kind of guy who gets selected to play in an All-Star Game. His time with San Jose was not particularly beloved by many (hi, guilty) but the guy genuinely seems like a decent person.

So the NHL was probably a little surprised by the backlash it received when the league made sure Scott was uprooted from his home in Phoenix to be shipped off to Newfoundland all because of a stupid All-Star Game. That, I imagine, is partially because the NHL has long struggled to understand what its fanbase wants and because the NHL may be the only group in the world that thinks the NHL All-Star Game matters.

Reading The Players’ Tribune article on Scott’s decision to play in the All-Star Game doesn’t exactly let the NHL off the hook here. You should read the article in its entirety, but this excerpt in particular paints a clear picture.

So when someone from the NHL calls me and says, “Do you think this is something your kids would be proud of?”

… That’s when they lost me.

That was it, right there. That was the moment.

Because, while I may not deserve to be an NHL All-Star, I know I deserve to be the judge of what my kids will — and won’t — be proud of me for.

Imagine having the nerve to ask a father if playing in a meaningless All-Star Game (redundant, I know) is something his kids would be proud of. Whatever you think of Scott as a player, it’s important to remember that he, like every hockey player, is also a human being who deserves to be treated with some modicum of respect — especially by their damn employer.

I wasn’t happy Scott took a roster spot up on the Sharks and I’m not thrilled that enforcers still make up a part of the NHL — so hats off to the NHL for making Scott not just a sympathetic character, but someone I’m going to root for as long as he plays hockey. I hope he has a great time in Nashville, and selfishly I hope he puts a couple goals for the Pacific.