NHL Executive’s Shocking ‘51st State’ Remark Sparks Immediate Suspension—What Really Went Down?
The NHL has made a swift move, suspending Florida Panthers’ vice chairman and alternate governor Doug Cifu, cutting him off from all team and league activities. This blow comes after Cifu shared a series of controversial messages on X—formerly Twitter—that crossed a line, forcing the league to respond firmly. The digital sparring began innocuously enough with a Toronto fan commenting on the physicality during the Panthers’ playoff clash with the Maple Leafs, but it soon spiraled into a highly charged exchange involving a politically sensitive jibe that forced the shutdown of Cifu’s social media account altogether. With his name even etched on the Stanley Cup after the Panthers’ historic title last year, Cifu’s suspension sheds light on how even the most decorated figures in hockey aren’t immune to accountability in the age of social media.
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The NHL has suspended Florida Panthers vice chairman and alternate governor Doug Cifu from any involvement with the team or the league, doing so in response to inappropriate posts on Cifu’s now-shuttered social media account.
Cifu, in posts on X, got into a back-and-forth with a Toronto fan on Sunday night, the fan starting the exchange by comparing hits by Florida players in this ongoing series against the Maple Leafs to the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians.
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A post on Cifu’s account shortly after, in response to the Toronto fan, referred to the fan as a “51st state anti semite loser.” President Donald Trump has often said in recent months that he wants to see Canada added to the United States as the 51st state. That post was among those deleted not long afterward, and the account has since been suspended.
“The NHL has concluded that Mr. Cifu’s X posts were unacceptable and inappropriate,” the league said in a statement, first reported by The Toronto Sun. “As a result, Mr. Cifu has been suspended indefinitely from any involvement with the Club and the NHL.”
Cifu — whose name is etched on the Stanley Cup, part of the group that the Panthers included in that tribute after winning their first title last year — is CEO of Virtu Financial, a company he co-founded with Panthers owner, chairman and governor Vincent Viola in 2008.
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Cifu will have an in-person meeting with Commissioner Gary Bettman at some point.
“My behavior does not reflect the standards of the Florida Panthers organization and the Viola family,” Cifu said in a statement to Florida Hockey Now. “I sincerely apologize to all those affected by my comments. I am committed to working with the NHL to amend my actions.”
Eliot J. Schechter via Getty Images
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