"I do think everybody deserves a second chance in life," Brad said. "I really do. He was young when all this stuff happened, I get that, but you're old enough to know right from wrong at 14 years old. If you're bullying a handicapped kid when you're 14 years old, and something in your head doesn't click that this isn't right, I don't think you're ever going to figure it out.
"Do I think he needs to be banished from society and sent to the moon and left there until the end of time? No. Do I think he forfeits his right to get a college scholarship at the University of North Dakota? Yes. Do I think he forfeits his right to play in the NHL? Yes."
Brad said he's not in favor of "canceling" people for every little mistake, but said this situation is not an example of that.
"I don't think one thing should define the way your life goes, but I do think there are consequences to actions," Brad said. "Are we just going to cancel someone every time they make a mistake? I hate that. I hate the way the world is right now. I hate it. People are canceling everything for the smallest little things. But this is not that. This is not that. He didn't get caught throwing a plastic bottle out on the Interstate. It's different.
"Hockey. . . I thought everyone was on the same page. We need to eliminate this (stuff) from hockey. We need to eliminate people who think this way."
Near the end of the article:
"I think he should be able to go on and live a good life, make up for what he's done, go and get an education and find a job," Brad said. "I just don't think it should be hockey. I don't think he should have the right to play professional hockey when that's the exact thing we're trying to get rid of."
I think what Mitchell Miller did as a 14-year old was despicable. He committed a crime as a minor and suffered the consequences.
Is banning him from hockey for life going to make him a better person?
We all want to deal with nothing but ethical people in every walk of our lives. This never happens. Now that Mitchell Miller is a young adult by all means hold him fully accountable and dismiss him from the program if he ever does it again, and people are free to hold their own opinions on the quality of his character. The young man has much to consider going forward and has a lot of work to do in order to earn the respect of his peers, coaches, and UND fans.
At this time, I don't think a lifetime ban from his chosen vocation is the answer.