A former professional hockey player is facing a backlash after he posted photos of a massive dead grizzly bear he hunted in Yukon.
Tim Brent, who was born in Ontario and played for several teams in the NHL, posted the photos on Facebook and Twitter on Sept. 10.
He says in the post that he shot the bear as it headed toward him.
Brent says in another post on Sept. 12 that he also shot a moose in Yukon.
The posts of him posing with the dead wildlife have sparked criticism and threats from other social media users — including one suggesting they should get a Mexican cartel to "put a hit" on him and see how he felt.
Brent says in another post that he reported the tweet, but Twitter didn't see it as a threat.
"This is what we are up against as hunters and conservationists!" he wrote last Friday. "These are the types of messages I am getting on Twitter in response to my moose and bear hunts. I would love to know what constitutes a threat or abuse for Twitter?"
Brent did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Officials with the Yukon government didn't respond to questions about the outrage, but confirmed the fall hunting season for grizzly bears runs from Aug 1. to Nov. 15. They say it's legal to shoot moose from Aug. 1 to Oct. 31.
Officials say a non-resident Canadian hunter would need to use an outfitter or a special guide to hunt for a black bear, grizzly bear or moose in Yukon.
There's an estimated 6,000 to 7,000 grizzly bears in Yukon.
Earlier this year, outdoor television host Steve Ecklund's cougar hunt in Alberta led to a similar controversy — prompting Laureen Harper, wife of former prime minister Stephen Harper, to suggest Ecklund had a small penis — after he bragged about it on social media.
Similar outrage followed the killing of No. 148, a well-known Banff grizzly bear, by a hunter in British Columbia last summer.
Both kills were legal.
— The Canadian Press
