ESPN hockey analyst P.K. Subban made a senseless weight dig at Grammy-winning singer Lizzo on a broadcast, prompting angry responses on social media. (Watch the video below.)
The former NHL star was reviewing the Toronto Maple Leafs’ loss at home to the Florida Panthers in a second-round Stanley Cup playoff game on Tuesday. Co-host John Buccigross suggested the Maple Leafs should “pack a lunch” to prepare for Game 2.
“Maybe they need to pack a Lizzo-sized lunch,” Subban cracked.
“Subban took cheap shots all through his hockey career. Why did anyone think he’d stop after he retired?” hockey reporter Stefen Rosner credited his dad with saying.
Subban’s seemingly random meanness wasn’t the only instance a hockey announcer bashed someone’s appearance on the air recently. Hall of Famer Phil Esposito said of a spectator taunting the Tampa Bay Lightning in a first-round series against the Maple Leafs: “You’ve got a fat woman who’s yappin’ like crazy, or is that a guy with long hair? I can’t tell,” he said.
HuffPost has reached out to Subban, ESPN and Lizzo for comment.
Lizzo often promotes self-acceptance. “Do we realize that artists are not here to fit into your beauty standards? Artists are here to make art,” Lizzo said on Instagram in January. “And this body is art.”