During the first intermission at Saturday night’s hockey game between the San Jose Sharks and Pittsburgh Penguins at SAP Center, an offensive fan-submitted message flashed across the scoreboard in support of ICE. The team later apologized for the oversight.
As Bay Area News Group reports, alongside the typical “Go Team” or “Happy Birthday” personalized greetings displayed on the jumbotron during the team’s ninth annual Los Tiburones game celebrating Hispanic heritage Saturday, a hostile message from a fan popped up, stating, “SJ SHARKS FANS LOVE ICE!! GET’EM BOYZ!”
Per KRON4, the reaction from attendees at the game was swift, as many wondered how such a problematic message could possibly make it onto the big screen.
Sharks management posted an apology, saying the message made it through without approval, and they’re working to find out how it happened.
“During the first intermission of tonight’s game, an offensively worded message which had been externally submitted was inadvertently displayed on the in-arena scoreboard,” the statement said. “Sharks Sports & Entertainment deeply regrets that this message, which does not meet our organization’s values, was not detected during our standard review process.”
“The Sharks organization sincerely apologizes for this oversight, and we are actively working to determine the origin of the message,” the statement continued.
During the first intermission of tonight’s game, an offensively worded message which had been externally submitted was inadvertently displayed on the in-arena scoreboard. Sharks Sports & Entertainment deeply regrets that this message, which does not meet our organization’s…
— San Jose Sharks (@SanJoseSharks) October 19, 2025
In response to backlash from fans, Sharks team president Jonathan Becher posted on X, per Bay Area News Group, “Disappointing that this slipped through our internal controls, but even more disappointing that a fan somehow thinks this is acceptable,” continuing, “Definitely NEVER appropriate and completely not consistent with Teal Together.”
Disappointing that this slipped through our internal controls but even more disappointing that a fan somehow thinks this is acceptable https://t.co/yOYcpErwkn
— Jonathan Becher (@jbecher) October 19, 2025
Image: Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images