Iginla, just 23 years old, finished second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1997 while Grier is gaining a glowing reputation around the league for his scoring touch and hard hits. Speaking of hard hits, there is also a growing legion of black players that, to be blunt, have become known more for what they accomplish with their fists, rather than with their sticks. Things like that. It didn't bother me. I just wanted to be a hockey player.
Black players are checkers.
Black players are enforcers. We have different roles on a hockey club. Black players are bringing different things to the table, which means that black players are the same as everyone else. He played just two games with the Bruins that year, was sent down to the minors for the following two, and didn't come back to the NHL until 1961, when he returned for a 43-game stint. Through it all, he was met with an endless stream of verbal abuse.