(Reuters) – American defenseman Jalen Smereck said he is unsure about his future in the Ukrainian Hockey League (UHL) after an opponent made a racist gesture toward him in a game over the weekend.
HC Donbass’ Smereck, who is Black, was targeted by Kremenchuk’s Andriy Deniskin during the contest, with videos on social media showing him mimicking peeling a banana and eating it before he was ejected.
Deniskin later apologised on Instagram and the UHL banned him for 13 matches — three for a match penalty and a further 10 for the racist gesture.
Smereck said earlier in the week he would not play another game until Deniskin was suspended.
“I’m trying to figure out what the correct move would be,” Smereck told ESPN on Wednesday. “I’m just going to take a few days and think it over.
“Once you leave Europe it’s hard to come back. Once you leave the States, it’s hard to get back. It’s a tough situation. I’m going to take as much time as I can to think it over, and make the best move that I can.”
Smereck said he received support from former and current NHL players, including Arizona Coyotes’ Clayton Keller.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the video,” ESPN quoted Keller as saying. “Just terrible to see that.
“There’s no place for racism in hockey.
“I think the hockey community is so tight, and only continuing to grow. (Jalen) is playing for the next generation, to make sure this stuff never happens again.”
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)
