Seattle's Steven Thompson Makes Final Three for NHL's Biggest Community Award

The NHL just dropped the finalists for the Willie O'Ree Community Hero Award, and a Seattle name is right there in the mix. Steven Thompson, co-founder and president of the Seattle Pride Hockey Association, made the cut as one of three finalists from the USA competing for this honor. This is the kind of recognition that reminds you why hockey matters beyond the stat sheet.

What Thompson and SPHL Have Built in Seattle

Thompson runs the Seattle Pride Hockey Association, and the numbers speak for themselves. Every year, SPHL hosts the Seattle Pride Classic, which has grown into one of the largest LGBTQ+ hockey tournaments in the country, drawing around 300 participants annually. Under Thompson's leadership, the program has done something real: it's strengthened the connections inside the LGBTQ+ hockey community while pushing visibility and inclusion forward in a sport that historically hasn't always led on these issues.

How the Award Works and Why It Matters

The O'Ree Community Hero Award recognizes individuals who've made a positive impact on their community, culture, or society through hockey. Fans get to vote starting now and running through May 24 at 11:59 pm ET at NHL.com/OReeAward. The winner from each country (USA and Canada) gets a $30,000 donation to a charity of their choice. The other two finalists from each country still get $10,000 toward their charity. So even if Thompson doesn't take home the top prize, the work he and SPHL are doing gets meaningful financial support.

Thompson is competing against two other USA finalists doing incredible work: Bill Tobias with the Central Park North Stars, a program serving kids and adults with intellectual, developmental, and physical disabilities since 2014, and Kendal Troutman, founder of 24 Degrees of Color, which creates pathways for Black and Latinx youth to get into recreational ice sports. The bar is high, but so is the impact.

Head to NHL.com/OReeAward and cast your vote for Thompson and the Seattle Pride Hockey Association. This is what community looks like.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.