Much of the chatter from the NHL world on Saturday was about the insane amount of goals coming from both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Washington Capitals forward Alex Ovechkin. But, Tampa Bay Lightning winger J.T. Brown made the loudest statement of them all.

Brown raised a clenched fist during the national anthem prior to the Lightning playing the Florida Panthers. He later defended the protest, saying he knew, in his heart, it was the right decision.

On Sunday, Brown took to Twitter to further explain his motives.

Here is an excerpt from his statement:

I have respect for those who put their life on the line to protect and serve their community. I have had both negative and positive encounters with police officers so to say all police officers are bad would be false.

Again, this is about bringing awareness to the real issues and not changing the narrative. My @'s on Twitter alone prove why this topic must be talked about.

I have received racist remarks and death threats because they disagree with how I choose to raise awareness. We need to be able to listen to those with an opposing view and talk to one another if he want to learn, grow, and make change.

With his actions Saturday night, Brown became the first NHL player to protest during the anthem this season.

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