There will be a widespread assumption that Shane will slot into the marriage of the hockey husbands as a “nagging wife” stereotype. Policing Ilya’s public behaviour.

What everybody fails to realize is that Ilya has always been like this, and Shane married him anyway. As far as Shane is concerned, Ilya’s continual public chirping of the opposition isn’t a bug, it’s a feature.

And while Shane has always presented himself as a blandly perfect role model, he’s also always been bitchy and judgmental about less talented players. It’s just that prior to now, he’s said all those things behind closed doors. Now that he’s been outed and his golden boy reputation has been torched, Shane can use his outside voice to say what he really thinks.

Eventually people figure out that openly hilarious chaotic asshole Ilya Rozanov and secretly hilarious media trained asshole Shane Hollander are actually perfect for each other. They not only match each other’s freak, they also match each other’s level of judgment about substandard hockey players.

I know the fandom loves clowning on skip for being boring but my opinion is that people hugely underestimate their potential

I think media and the internet would become obsessed with Kip because he lived the dream of meet-cuting one of the most eligible bachelors in New York. And making said eligible bachelor fall for him so hard he decided to come out. And then they changed hockey forever. And also he's handsome and kind and extremely intelligent.

Like especially right after the admirals cup win Kip gets so many interview requests and there are a million "What we know about Scott Hunter's boyfriend" articles.

And here's the thing: Scott has this extremely curated image. He's got this reputation of being kind, fair, respectable, a true role model. And Kip can match this energy PERFECTLY. In a few of my fics, Ilya refers to Kip as "the First Lady of gay hockey" and that's exactly the energy Kip is bringing to the table. He's kind, he handles the media storm really well, he does everything to make sure this is easy on Scott. He accepts this pioneer status with grace and humility.

Shane and Ilya have no interest in being these, like, spokespeople of queer men in hockey, but scott and kip have it covered. They do tons of interviews, and beautiful photo shoots of them sitting in armchairs in matching sweaters holding hands. Kip shows up at Scott's game, sitting with the WAGs in Scott's jersey. Their wedding is extremely tasteful and all the tabloids report on it. The spiciest photo of them out there is one where they're kissing in front of a restaurant and Kip has his hand near Scott's butt.

Scott is so grateful and proud of Kip and their relationship every single day, and while he never expects Kip to take this challenge in stride, he adores that he's able to, and supports him in every way he can. And Kip does love it, in a way: it's very healing to be able to give queer kids (and adults!) this kind of hope, to make them feel less excluded. To shine a light on gay rights and discrimination and to make the world a slightly better place.

And while they're the perfect couple to take on this challenge, it's also EXHAUSTING making themselves palatable for straight people. But that's a different post.

It is exhausting, absolutely. But also, Scott becomes an activist after he comes out. He’s going on talk shows, he’s going on the news, he is saying things that are unpalatable to straight people. That’s very clear from his speech at the MLH awards when he wins playoff MVP and uses his speech as a call to arms against homophobia in the sport he’s dedicated his life to.

Kip is a smart guy. He knows full well that Scott will get away with more activism on a political level if his romantic relationship is perceived as “safe” and “unthreatening”. By straight people who are on the fence about whether to be allies or bigots. And Scott is determined to make a difference. Drag men’s hockey kicking and screaming into the 21st century.

So Kip puts up with it. They both put up with it. Scott has a platform now, after thirtysomething years of hiding. And he’s using it. The league is furious because he never shuts up about his opinions now, and they’re usually highly critical. As long as Scott is perceived as palatable by the average straight TV viewer, journalists will keep asking for his thoughts on this that or the other issue.

So yeah, they resolve to be the “respectable hockey gays” in public. Nobody else qualifies for that role. For four years there are no other out players. Then Troy Barrett comes out, but he was a controversial figure long before coming out. He remains controversial, and he’s not a polished guy who can go on news programs and wipe the floor with bigots. Pointing out their hypocrisy while remaining polite to win over undecided viewers.

And then there’s Shane and Ilya, deeply controversial just by daring to be in a relationship with each other. Yeah, Scott is basically the president of gay hockey and Kip is the First Lady. It sucks, but what can you do? People actually listen to Scott. Which means he and his boyfriend need to have a squeaky clean image so people will keep on listening to him.