Blackhawks sued (again) by teammate of Kyle Beach for sexual assault

[Rabid Ranger]

Should’ve been not just Bedard, but five years' worth of first round picks (from when the article was published onward), like what happened to the Blues with the Scott Stevens tampering filing, as well as losing Stevens. I'm not saying we didn't deserve to be docked picks (we did; tampering is tampering, after all), but covering up a literal sexual assault of two of your younger players for playoff aspirations, covering it up for a decade before said rapist assaulted a teenager because of that coverup from the top down? Isn't this so much worse than tampering with a player? Doesn't that deserve far more punishment than what the Blues got, what the Senators got now?

Instead, that same team lucks into the number one overall pick - and might even luck into it this year with Celebrini if the NHL has anything to say about it; it wouldn't surprise me one bit, given this gong-show of a league - and gets a generational star, in what basically amounts to giving a naughty toddler a thirty-second-length timeout and then a cookie, ice cream, and a brand new toy.

My heart aches for Kyle Beach and John Doe because one evil monster hurt them and ruined their careers. They deserved better.

And to every Blackhawks fan: don't blame us for hating your team for this. Don't blame "the mob", the "haters" for despising your team's preferential treatment by the NHL, because you damn well know that if the Blues did something like this, our team would be docked ten years' worth of draft picks.

But to you, everything's all fine because like what your late owner, Rocky, said, "It's all in the past, we're gonna look towards the future, and f*** Kyle Beach, f*** John Doe, and f*** anyone who sees the utmost hypocrisy of my team getting preferential treatment while other teams get screwed for stuff that barely even comes close to what our team did. Anyway, f*** y'all, we got Bedard, lol."

I don't think you understand what a cover up is.

 

[mouser]

Sure but someone needs to lose multiple firsts. If a botched trade can lose u a pick surely multiple sexual assault/harassment cover ups lose multiple. Unless its common hockey culture to cover up for old pedos. It maybe who knows with how easily they did it.

So a franchise that covered up what looks like multiple sexual assaults shouldn't have draft picks taken away because it hurts fans?

Did I read this right?

No mention of the players assaulted? They didn't get hurt?

WOW

hawks should be stripped out their next 4 first round picks. they need to actually be punished since their measly 2 million dollar fine was covered up the moment they "won" the draft lottery.

NHL is a joke when it comes to dishing out punishment. Probably the worst sports league in the world at judging the situation and determining the consequences for the party at fault. No wonder it's reffing is also the worst in any sports league and it's a reflection of how the NHL operates. Lots of corruption at the top. Ottawa getting royally screwed for administration screw up getting punished more severely compared to Blackhawks covering up a rape case in-order to win the cup. Whats a 2 million fine do? Nothing. If you want to fine them, at least fine them with a heavy fine like 25 million or 50 million or reduce their cap by 25% for 5 years. It's completely a joke how Chicago gets away with murder because they are the original 6 team and a major US team. It's definitely easier for the league to punish Ottawa, a small market team or Vancouver since they are Canadian teams and no one cares. Honestly a pathetic clown league imo. This is why I will always call Bettman, Buttman because he deserves that moniker for allowing corruption and favoritism.

Still can’t believe they weren’t docked picks

They still need to lose multiple firsts. Regardless of how the rest of the organization feels.

I don't mean outright cancel the Hawks but stripping them of years worth of picks, millions in fines, no participation in free agency stuff. You do it a few years and we all move on. The Sens are losing a 1st rounder because someone screwed up some paperwork a while back. This is so much worse. If the Lightning ever did this I'd give em up and cheer the Avalanche and Red Wings starting tomorrow. My whole family is from Michigan on my mother's side and I have long respected the Avs since Sakic's day. I would be embarrassed to know this happened more than once.

It's not worth it to me.

The NHL Constitution only gives the commissioner power to take away draft picks for transgressions affecting the competitive aspects of the game. As terrible as Chicago’s handling of the Aldrich situation was, in my opinion it would have been a difficult legal argument for the League to make that not reporting possible issues with the video coach to HR immediately to avoid internal distractions affected competitive advantage. If we used that principle then any misdeed a team commits during the playing season could be considered as affecting competitive aspects of the game—which I don’t believe is the spirit of the Constitutional limitation of Commissioner power.

A good question is why doesn’t the NHL Constitution grant the commissioner power to fine teams draft picks for all transgressions? Not solely for transgressions judged to affect competitive aspects of the NHL?

 

[T REX]

The NHL has a serious PR issue outside of a certain segment of folks.

SMDH. Just freaking awful. Bettman is garbage.

 

[wetcoast]

sure, but dinging the organization with penalties creates a deterrent for any (possible) coverups in the future from whichever team in the league.

Maybe you missed the people and organization has been penalized but what do you want, for the Blacks to go to the league and say Mr Bettman you need to punish in accordance with the wishes of certain HF Boards posters...................

 

[leafsfan2point0]

I’m sure if it was a Canadian team Bettman would have them hanged.

 

[Memento]

I don't think you understand what a cover up is.

They literally hid the fact that their video coach, Brad Aldrich, sexually assaulted two of their players because they thought that it would "hurt their chances at a Stanley Cup", literally buried it in the sand like ostrich heads (yes, I know ostriches don't bury their heads in the sand. Yes, I know it's a figure of speech). Said rapist got his name on Lord Stanley's trophy. They then hid what he did when he quietly left. They could've exposed him afterward. They could've done the right thing beforehand. They didn't. Aldrich went on to sexually assault a teenager.

That's a cover up in any definition. It doesn't have to be a vast conspiracy; it just means that the Blackhawks covered up information for personal gain, for greed.

 

[wetcoast]

I’m sure if it was a Canadian team Bettman would have them hanged.

hyperbole at it's finest here.

 

[Unbiased Fan]

If the NHL were run like any Fortune 500 by its board of directors (owners), he wouldn’t have lasted this long. We can say that he’s creating value for the owners as the reason he stays but in reality he is short selling the potential growth to them every time he trips over the many issues he has in his tenure.. Hockey is for everyone. Yes it is. Now let’s ban displays of diversity like pride tape.

Gary B should removed but the majority of owners obviously aren’t ready to make the change.

Because I live in a society that interacts with other humans and must in order to succeed. I don’t live in a cage or the jungle. But to your animal analogy, I even believe donkeys have a place in our world.

Fake it until you make it

 

[Darkstar]

Nobody's coming for Hawks fans until they start trying to be anything less than saddened by their own organization.

Boo f***ing hoo, sorry you have to hear about it, but if we're really going to play the who the f*** are you game here then you guys are not the victims. In fact, the literal opposite. So either sit quietly or try to rationalize it and expect people to slap you down every time.

It's not mob judgment, they did wrong. You're the one taking this personally like it's somehow about you. You're not the important party and you weren't wronged, so if you're so soft you literally can't read anything negative about your team you need to stay way the f*** away from threads in which they're investigated for crimes.

Every Hawks fan I know IS saddened and disgusted by what happened, we simply aren't going to put on a scarlet letter or go through your struggle sessions, because you, rando guy on the internets, demand it. The people involved were fired and league dealt with it, most of us are choosing to move on, not wallow in it. If that offends you somehow, then that is a you problem, not mine.

 

[Darren McCord]

league dealt with it

What did the league do? Honest question. Because they didn't do much of anything. Also *some people were fired*. Wirtz still owns the team. What punishment did they recieve?

 

[Bobby Orrtuzzo]

Nothing but a (to them) small fine shall suffice I'm sure

 

[Zalos]

A lot of hyperbole in this thread. That's all I'm going to say.

 

[Davimir Tarablad]

Nothing but a (to them) small fine shall suffice I'm sure

Just a drop in the pond of Bedard merch they've sold

 

[Ryder Halak 2nd]

Big 5'8 Brad Aldrich sure overpowered a lot of pro athletes.

 

[norrisnick]

Big 5'8 Brad Aldrich sure overpowered a lot of pro athletes.

Yup. Not all power is physical strength.

 

[njdevils1982]

Just a drop in the pond of Bedard merch they've sold

right, they can afford a 'modest' amount of blood money (again)

 

[dj Mahoney]

This is becoming as bad as Maple Leaf Gardens Saga .

 

[calder candidate]

What did the league do? Honest question. Because they didn't do much of anything. Also *some people were fired*. Wirtz still owns the team. What punishment did they recieve?

Good question, Ottawa lost a first rd pick for a administrative mistake, this whole scandal them + giving him references to find a new job with high school kids seem like this is a bigger issue yet NHL didn’t do anything but try to sweep it under the rug and Chicago were rewarded with the 1st OV pick…

 

[Darkstar]

What did the league do? Honest question. Because they didn't do much of anything. Also *some people were fired*. Wirtz still owns the team. What punishment did they recieve?

Since it wasn't considered a competitive issue, a 2 million dollar fine, nothing else. Rocky is dead and stepped away from the day to day after all this came out. It still hasn't been shown that even was aware of all this when it happened. I understand why fans of other teams are mad about it, but it is what it is.

 

[Beau Knows]

I'm sure it wasn't easy to come forward with this, I hope he gets a huge settlement.

 

[HanSolo]

Scream into the void all you want, but the matter has already been decided. Justice has been served, just not the mob justice y'all so desperately want.

 

[Cubs2024wildcard]

The Chicago Blackhawks are just a creepy organization and the NHL doesn't seem to care their image looks disgusting over this.

Seriously, when do the reporters start asking the players "how do you feel playing for such a filthy organization and why would you want to be associated with an organization that covered up multiple sexual assaults?"

That day will come just wait.....

 

[njdevils1982]

I'm sure it wasn't easy to come forward with this, I hope he gets a huge settlement.

hopefully much more than the 2 million fine for a team valued at 1.4 billion at the time of the punishment 2 years ago

they were fined less than a penny...

0.0014 %

actually!..... that's not even a penny off them in the grand picture...a joke


to put it another way..... if you make 50 grand a year it equates to a $70 fine.

it's gary's time to shine

 

[Hanji]

Since it wasn't considered a competitive issue, a 2 million dollar fine, nothing else. Rocky is dead and stepped away from the day to day after all this came out. It still hasn't been shown that even was aware of all this when it happened. I understand why fans of other teams are mad about it, but it is what it is.

Scream into the void all you want, but the matter has already been decided. Justice has been served, just not the mob justice y'all so desperately want.

“Justice has been served.” “It is what it is.”

Yet you wonder why Hawks fans are villainized?

 

[Leafs87]

Pretty sure justice will come through the legal system, not the league.

The NHL has its hands sort of tied. I am not even sure to what level they are able to get involved. The Sens losing a 1st round pick, was due to something that affected the league operations directly and honestly I’m not even sure that will stick, and without any intent of sounding inconsiderate this does not. This impacts the brand image and a whole bunch of other things, but they were fined the max amount, whether people feel like that’s just or not is a different story. I understand that through the league channels Beach received a significant financial compensation. The NHL “dealt” with basically everyone who was without a reasonable doubt tied to this act directly.