Chapter Text
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
The Centaurs’ very own Social Media Manager, Harris Drover, sits down with Montreal Voyageur captain Shane Hollander to reveal the truth and put an end to speculation. Watch now at OttawaCentaurs.nhl/blog/Holla….
@BostonBearsOfficial
For eight years, Ilya Rozanov wore our jersey and led our room. We know his character. We know his heart. We stand with Ilya, Shane Hollander, and every player who deserves better from this sport than institutional failure, locker room cruelty, and the silence that protects both. There is no place in our game for racism, homophobia, or abuse disguised as culture.
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@SeattleStormOfficial
There is no room in this sport for hate, silence, or complicity. We stand with Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov.
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@TheScottHunter
No one should have to survive this to play the game they love. Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov deserved safety, dignity, and honesty long before this interview. They have my respect, my support, and my anger.
@coffeeandchaos
sorry THE LEAGUE wanted them to say it was a prank?????????????? 😵💫
@pixelatedrain
The part wrecking me is that the league wanted them to pretend it meant nothing. Eleven years, and they were meant to act like it was nothing.
@Mildpanic
“we were expected to tell the world that it was a prank” no yeah thats going to haunt me for a bit
@NYAdmiralsOfficial
Every player deserves safety, dignity, and respect. We are thinking of Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov today, and of every player who has ever been made to feel they had to hide who they are.
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@watchingwarmups
“The only person who was on my side was Hayden” oh thats brutal
@northendnotes
That one line about Hayden changes how I’m reading all of this tbh
@midnightpuck
the fact that the only person on his side was Hayden is so bleak i cant even laugh about it
@HaydenPikeNHL
If you’re uncomfortable with the current situation, good. Imagine living through it, rather than reading it through your screen. What is happening to them now matters more than anyone’s discomfort. Shane and Ilya deserve better.
@TorontoGuardiansOfficial
We know the damage done when organisations choose silence, comfort, or self protection over accountability. It should never take public pain for a team to do the right thing. Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov deserved better. So does every player forced to carry the cost of that failure.
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@puckandprose
“You tell yourself you’re being careful… and then one day people decide that careful means dishonest.” That is a devastating line.
@greywindow
“careful means dishonest” is such a brutal summary of what public life does to private people
@offsideopinion
The interview does two things at once. It confirms the relationship was not new, and it confirms the fear was not paranoia. Shane Hollander described exactly why they kept it private, then the leaked texts proved him right.
@Zane_Boodram
In all of the chaos surrounding the timeline reveal, do not lose the actual story here. The messages were racist. They were homophobic. They were cruel. Shane and Ilya did not create this situation by existing. Other people created it with hate.
@ChicagoFalconsOfficial
No player should have to endure racism, homophobia, or harassment from within their own room. We support Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, and every person pushing this game to be better.
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@VancouverBreakersOfficial
Respect is not optional. Inclusion is not optional. We stand with Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, today and always.
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@justhereforthehockey
wait they got benched immediately because it was “a lot” for people??????
@glassandice
Not enough people are talking about the benching. Not performance based. Not discipline based. Just discomfort.
@fiveminormood
the benching part is getting buried under the timeline reveal but thats WILD actually
@Barrett_Troy
I’ve had my fair share of homophobia directed my way. I shouldn’t be used to it, but I am. But watching people try to diminish everything Shane has achieved because of who he loves, or the colour of his skin, is sickening. Knowing it came from his own room is worse.
@softcheeseenergy
not him saying the thing people questioned is the same thing that made him the player he is. that one got me 😭
@overtimeeyes
the “what you see on the ice is real” part is making me recontextualise about ten thousand clips
@marblesoup
sorry everyone thought this was a new relationship and meanwhile theyve been together since before the draft?????? 😭
@tuesdaymood
so all this time they thought they knew him and actually they only ever knew the version of him that was scared and hiding
@RoseLandryOfficial
I don’t care how many statements get posted today. The things that were said about Shane and Ilya were vicious, degrading, and inhuman. Shane and Ilya, I love you. The rest of you should be ashamed.
@Svetlana
A lot of you are getting distracted by the wrong part. The story is not that two men loved each other in private. The story is that other people answered that with racism, homophobia, and cruelty.
@DallasWranglersOfficial
Our game is at its strongest when every player is safe, respected, and able to be fully themselves. We stand against racism, homophobia, and the culture that allows either to thrive. We stand with Shane and Ilya
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@ColoradoSummitOfficial
Courage should never be required just to tell the truth. We stand with Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, and with every player who has been failed by the culture around them.
@OttawaCentaursOfficial
Hollander breaks silence
@rinkratjules
“I’m not surprised by them” might actually be the worst line in the whole interview
@user1410
no bc IM NOT SURPRISED BY THEM??? that made my stomach drop
@sleepdeprivedowl
the fact that the texts didnt surprise him is maybe the bleakest thing he said all night
@marblesoup
not to be disrespectful during a very serious interview but shane hollander saying “fuck you” straight to camera was a LOT for me personally 🫠
@peachykeen_
deeply inappropriate time to realise shane hollander being angry does in fact work for me. noted. 😳
@greaselinetalk
some of you are handling the hollander interview in a way that is NOT helping 💀
@thatsnotmycat
“You don’t owe anyone access to you” is going to stick with me for a long time actually
@cassetteghost
that “you don’t owe anyone access to you” line should be on the walls of every juniors locker room honestly
@softcheeseenergy
HE ENDED THE INTERVIEW WITH “I LOVE YOU” IN RUSSIAN???? oh im done 😭
@DrLisaHayes
People keep circling back to the relationship as though that is the shocking part. It is not. The shocking part is the racism, the homophobia, and the fact that this level of hatred could live inside a professional room for so long.
@OnTheIceReport
What is landing with readers is not just that Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov were together for eleven years. It is that those years were shaped by a culture where racist and homophobic bile could be spoken openly enough to become routine.
@Daily_Puck
Everyone is sharing the interview. They should be. But do not let Montreal hide behind the romance of it all. The texts were racist. The texts were homophobic. That is the fire here. Half the league has managed to say something before Montreal has, and that tells its own story.
@offsideopinion
Every time I remember those texts were coming from his own room I get angry all over again.
@glassandice
What gets me is how casual some of it sounds. Not one explosive moment. Just a pattern of ugliness.
@watchingwarmups
And the private chat detail matters. They knew enough not to say it where decent people could hear them.
@puckandprose
What is so damning here is not only the language, but the normalisation of it. No pushback. No discomfort. No one stepping in.
@rinkratjules
also the racial stuff is getting buried under the relationship discourse and that is making me nuts. the texts were racist. say it properly.
@softcheeseenergy
it is the “look at him” line for me. like just full mask off ugliness. disgusting.
@marblesoup
the fact they were questioning his leadership and calling him a liability over THIS?? after everything hes done for that team?? foul. 😒
@northendnotes
Calling your own captain a liability because of optics is rotten enough. Adding racism and homophobia on top of that is beyond foul.
@Daily_Puck
At this point, Montreal’s silence is becoming part of the story. The interview is out. Other teams have spoken. Public anger is growing. The organisation at the centre of it has still said nothing.
@TheRinkReport
As reaction continues to intensify, attention is increasingly turning to Montreal’s lack of comment. Multiple teams, players, and media figures have now responded publicly to Hollander’s interview and the leaked texts.
@greaselinetalk
Montreal really sitting this out like maybe everyone will just get bored and go away huh
@MontrealVoyageursOfficial
The Montreal Voyageurs are aware of the concerns raised following recent reports and public discussion this week.
We understand that this situation has been upsetting for many. The content described in the reported messages is deeply troubling and, if authentic, would not reflect the standards or values of our organisation.
We are currently reviewing the matter internally and remain in communication with the league as appropriate. While that process is ongoing, our priority is to approach these concerns with care, seriousness, and responsibility.
Effective immediately, all players, coaches, and hockey operations staff will take part in mandatory sensitivity and inclusion training, with specific focus on equality awareness. We will also be making charitable contributions to the Irina Foundation and to other charities supporting LGBTQ+ rights and equity initiatives.
We remain committed to learning from this moment and to taking any appropriate next steps once the facts have been fully established.
@icingsarenotreal
Not naming the people harmed is certainly a choice.
@goalmouthgrace
“The content described in the reported messages” say what actually happened or do not bother posting at all.
@softcheeseenergy
“if authentic” but also mandatory training immediately 😭 oh okay so you do think it happened then
@hattrickghost
This reads like they are apologising for the optics, not the harm.
@creasegremlin
training and donations are not accountability. be serious.
@tinyzamboni
so the punishment is what exactly. a seminar and a cheque. cool.
@leftpostlarry
No names. No consequences. No urgency. Just internal review and vibes.
@warmupjacket
No one trusts “we’re handling it internally” when the whole issue is what was happening internally.
@clockwatcher88
“once the facts have been fully established” = buying time and hoping the temperature drops
@rinksidedrip
they somehow made an apology sound like an hr email 💀
@puckandprose
The statement is carefully written to acknowledge public concern without accepting concrete responsibility. It is far more interested in process than accountability.
@boardsideview
No interim suspensions. No one stepped away from the team. No disciplinary action announced at all. That tells me plenty.
@snackbetweenperiods
The donations bit is especially gross. Charity is not a substitute for consequences.
@glassandice
The “equity initiatives” phrasing is doing a very convenient job of blurring the racism into something softer and less specific.
@dropglovespls
mandatory training is what you do when someone misses a policy update. not when your room is rotten.
@carparkpuck
This is absolutely a statement written for sponsors first.
@twineandtape
This feels less like a response and more like an attempt to contain a spill.
@civicarena
If your first instinct is sensitivity training, you still think this is a perception problem.
@iceburnbook
Backlash to Montreal’s statement is centring on four broad criticisms: the refusal to name those harmed, the lack of announced consequences, the use of distancing language around the alleged messages, and the organisation’s emphasis on training and donations.
@TapeToTapeTalk
Montreal’s statement appears to have intensified the reaction rather than calmed it, with many responses describing it as evasive, weak, and overly focused on managing fallout.
@greaselinetalk
Very strong “can we all move on now” energy from Montreal here
@softcheeseenergy
they really thought sensitivity training and donations were gonna close the door on this huh
@icingsarenotreal
@NoStringsJourno if thats the full extent of their response, let em have it
@peachykeen_
@NoStringsJourno if they think this is enough, rip it open
@NoStringsJourno
@MontrealVoyageursOfficial you were warned [link]