Brendan Burke, the 20-year old son of Toronto Maple Leafs GM Brian Burke, has come out in a very public way.
Brendan, pictured above, next to the Stanley Cup that his father won, while GM with the Anaheim Ducks in 2007, currently is a student at Miami University (Ohio), and also serves as a student manager for the school's championship hockey team.
After initially coming out to his family, he also came out to his team and has encountered fairly unanimous support.
Rather than telling the story in the first person, ESPN columnist John Buccigross pretty much tells his story for him, albeit in a very honest and compelling way.
Buccigross takes the coming out story from its genesis to where it has evolved...stressing how supportive Burke's dad and school have been and pushing the envelope by asking ex-NHL stars to join Brendan in disclosure. Along the way, questions about how a gay athlete would be received in the macho NHL are tossed out and speculated upon.
Brendan Burke wants to be the trailblazer and open the dialogue about being gay in the homophobic sports world of professional hockey. For this alone, he deserves praise and encouragement.
Read the story here.
After you read the piece, send an e-mail of appreciation to Buccigross at john.buccigross@espn.com
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