Luke Prokop, seen here at the Downtown Community Arena in Edmonton on Friday, saw his documentary, The Hockey Player, make its premiere on Sunday night in Toronto.Candice Ward/The Globe and Mail
Luke Prokop recalls knowing at 14 that he was “a little different” from other boys on his hockey team. But the talented, big Edmonton-raised player kept it a secret for years.
Back then, he wanted to fit in – not stand out. Prokop’s goal was to play in the NHL, and he didn’t see then how he could make that a reality while showing his true self.
It’s among the poignant anecdotes he shares in The Hockey Player, a new documentary that follows Prokop, who in 2021 came out as the first openly gay player under NHL contract. He was just 19 at the time and freshly drafted to the league, when he suddenly assumed an unexpected role as a trailblazer.
“I looked back on when I first came out publicly and saw how many people it affected and inspired,” Prokop told The Globe and Mail, before VIP screenings of the film took place in San Francisco, Edmonton and Toronto this past week.
“So being able to help someone who might be in a similar situation, that was the main driver for me in making this documentary.”
The 80-minute film is the most candid and in-depth telling of his story, including emotional interviews with Prokop and his family, plus footage gathered behind the scenes of his hockey life over three years. The doc has two storylines. It puts inclusivity in the sport under a microscope; while also showing how hard it is for a prospect – openly gay or not – to crack an NHL roster and make his career there.
From Upper Canada Films, the doc is produced by Taylor Prestidge and directed by Jacqueline Doorey. Debuting publicly on June 29, it will stream globally on Prime Video and Apple TV. In Canada it will also air on OUTtv.
“To see the highs and lows of what goes into trying to make it, in addition to having the weight of the world as a pioneer in the community,” said Prestidge. “It’s really something that is exceptional.”
The Nashville Predators selected Prokop 73rd overall in 2020. Today the 6-foot-5, 224-pound defenceman is 24 years old and has been on seven teams since, from the WHL to the ECHL and AHL. Currently with the Bakersfield Condors, the AHL affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers, Prokop is still trying to land his first full-time spot in the NHL.
Prokop publicly came out in 2021 and notes that he remains the only hockey player at his level to do so. He points to the support that he got five years ago when he made his announcement, though, as a sign that there is acceptance waiting for others in hockey.Candice Ward/The Globe and Mail
He recounts what it was like to come out to family at age 18 in 2020, including the worries he had about telling his father. Then publicly the next year, the people he consulted before announcing it in on his social media channels, and the groundswell of reaction that followed, nearly all of it positive. He describes the rush of supportive calls and texts from NHL players and global celebrities.
Yet as the film attests, five years after coming out publicly, Prokop is still the only openly gay man playing pro hockey in North America.
“That’s kind of surprising to me, and there’s a side of me that understands why someone might not want to come out – it’s a lot of responsibility and attention that some people wouldn’t be comfortable with,” said Prokop.
“But if a player really wanted to come out and was trying to understand if it would be positive or not, they can just go look at that one Instagram post I had and see the amount of support I got.”
In the film, you see Prokop the pioneer, but also the player who looks and acts like all the other guys in the dressing room.
“I think conversations about what it is to support a gay hockey player, work with a gay hockey player, have a gay hockey player as a son or friend,” said Doorey, the director. “A lot of those conversations have never really happened before, at least at the level that Luke’s playing at”
Filmmakers interviewed his NHL clubs, their farm teams, Prokop’s teammates, coaches and friends, plus expert voices from the LGBTQ community and allies, including Mark Tewksbury, Brock McGillis and Brian Burke.
Jacob Tierney also sounds off on hockey culture in the documentary, director of the TV series Heated Rivalry. In fact, The Hockey Player filmmakers say they benefitted greatly from the timing and massive popularity of Tierney’s fictional show about the secret love affair between two rival pro hockey players.
Prestidge says he initially had a tough time getting sponsors and brands to invest in the film about Prokop and the film was in jeopardy of not getting completed. But after Heated Rivalry came out in late 2025 and demonstrated considerable mainstream appeal for gay hockey stories, attitudes shifted.
Prokop's documentary not only shows his experience as an openly gay hockey player; it demonstrates just how difficult it is to make it onto an NHL roster, even as a high draft pick.Candice Ward/The Globe and Mail
“At first, people felt like Luke’s story – albeit it was strong – they felt like it just wasn’t a fit for them, whatever their reason might be,” said Prestidge. “And it wasn’t until Heated Rivalry came out that all of a sudden several came back saying, “Hey, can we pick up that conversation?”
Prokop has received lots of interview requests to talk about Heated Rivalry. While he laughs that viewers won’t be getting any steamy love scenes in his documentary like in the hit series, they both inspire dialogue.
Prokop says all of his hockey teams were supportive about having the documentary crews around.
“My teammates were all great about it,” said Prokop. “I got poked fun of a little bit for being a movie star, but other than that, it was really good.”