Former Hockey Player P.K. Subban Slammed for Tasteless Body-Shaming Joke About Lizzo During NHL Playoffs

In poor taste. P.K. Subban is facing backlash after making a tasteless joke about Lizzo during a broadcast for the NHL playoffs.

While discussing the Florida Panthers and the Toronto Maple Leafs game on Tuesday, May 2, with fellow analysts, co-anchor John Buccigross implied that the Maple Leafs needed to “pack a lunch” to gain momentum after losing to the Panthers, to which Subban, 33, retorted, “Maybe they need to pack a Lizzo-sized lunch.”

The former hockey player’s comment earned him criticism from viewers after clips of the moment circulated on social media where users slammed Subban for his “fatphobic” and “gross” words and calls for his removal began to circulate.

Subban, for his part, hasn’t specifically addressed the backlash, but he did elaborate on what the term “pack a lunch” means following the initial broadcast.

“Pack a lunch … lock in!” he wrote via Twitter on Tuesday alongside a screenshot of the definition of the slang with the terms “large, sustained amount of effort” highlighted. “Be ready to compete! Bring work boots! Expect that they are going to try to outwork you in hard areas.”

While Lizzo, 35, has not called out Subban, this isn’t the first time she’s been the subject of body-shaming. In August 2022, comedian Arie Spears made comments about the “Good As Hell” performer’s figure.

“I can’t get past the fact that she looks like the s–t emoji,” Spears, 48, said during an appearance on “The Art of Dialogue.” “She’s got a very pretty face, but she keeps showing her body off, like, come on, man. Come on, yo.”

At the time, Lizzo did not directly address Spears’ controversial statement. However, when she took home the impactful Video for Good award at the 2022 VMAs, she seemingly shaded the Mad TV alum — and all of her other critics — in her speech.

“I want to say thank you so much for supporting me and loving me. And now, to the bitches that got something to say about me in the press,” the “Special” songstress said to the audience. “You know what, I’m not going to say nothing. They’ll be like, ‘Lizzo, why don’t you clap back?’ Because bitch, I’m winning, hoe! Big bitch is winning, hoe!”

Throughout the Grammy winner's career, she's used her platform to preach body positivity and inclusivity for humans of all shapes and sizes. In addition to her musical success, Lizzo also created the brand Yitty, which sells shapewear for all body types. In September 2019, Lizzo exclusively spoke with Us Weekly about how she gained her confidence and why she wants to share that side of herself with the world

"It definitely comes with time," she recalled to Us. "I wasn’t really given the opportunities or the privileges to feel like a sex symbol when I was growing up. I was a fat black girl in Houston and I didn’t see myself in magazines.