Confirmed with Link: Oilers hire Stan Bowman as GM & Executive VP- press conference at 10:30

[SupremeTeam16]

So Sheldon Kennedy is risking his and his businesses reputation by putting his credibility and morals up for sale? That’s what some of you actually believe? Rather than the far less reasonable explanation that he’s actually spent time with Bowman and gotten to know him and genuinely supports the guy?

It’s starting to make sense now guys.. You know what, the Oilers probably paid Kennedy 2 years ago to take Bowman to pave the way for hiring him years later.

 

[yukoner88]

I've been mulling this over ever since the announcement. And my gut instinct is to hate this hire with everything I got.

This is such a tone deaf move, of all the people on the planet, why this guy? What is it that Stan Bowman has that's so outstanding, that's it's worth the baggage this piece of shit human being carries?

Just why? What in the serious f***ing hell why? And this is from someone who has almost always been behind anything the team does with the most optimistic point of view for the Oilers I can think of.

Someone please help me here cause I'm lost and just don't see how this hiring is a good idea.

 

[5 Mins 4 Ftg]

I'm not sure what or who you were looking for in a 'pure analytics' hire. Would like to better understand what you mean. Jackson has been clear and committed to upgrading the information/analytics area to support decision making and hired Parkatti to lead it. He hired Bowman for shared philosophical beliefs in building a best of class organization citing information/analytics based decision making along with development; innovative mindset and other core beliefs.

Bowman is a University of Notre Dame graduate with degrees in Finance and Computer Applications which would foster strong foundation for analytics. His early work in hockey focused on analytics-based projects and he's spoken of the Hawks use of analytics as a competitive advantage during their years as a dominant team.

I personally don't view Bowman as a traditional hockey thinking. But rather see a similar growth mindset that aligns well with the progressive beliefs of Jeff Jackson.

From adding talent to losing captains: NHL teams that changed the most this offseason

From the Chicago Blackhawks to the Vegas Golden Knights, check out 13 teams most affected by offseason moves both good -- and well, not so good.

www.espn.com

Hawks' GM Bowman his own hockey man

Hawks GM Bowman may have a famous dad, but it's his brains that are key.

www.espn.com

The interview Stauffer had with Bowman yesterday he speaks at length about his love of using analytics beginning with Chicago before it was fashionable. He seems balanced in his analytics vs eye test approach to the game.

 

[Tobias Kahun]

Some of these posts are so laughable, I had to double check to make sure I wasnt on reddit.

 

[Mr Positive]

So Sheldon Kennedy is risking his and his businesses reputation by putting his credibility and morals up for sale? That’s what some of you actually believe? Rather than the far less reasonable explanation that he’s actually spent time with Bowman and gotten to know him and genuinely supports the guy?

It’s starting to make sense now guys.. You know what, the Oilers probably paid Kennedy 2 years ago to take Bowman to pave the way for hiring him years later.

It's very funny when the commitment to hate on Bowman leads people to assume something must be wrong with Kennedy because the alternative that maybe Bowman isn't a bad guy just can't be true

What's next? Will they come after Beach as well. Beach also has made amends with Bowman

After all the info coming out there are two main villians in this. One is of course Aldrich. The other one is John McDonaugh. He was Bowman's boss and told everyone he would deal with it, with the implication that everyone else drop the issue. There are other secondary villains who were the willful idiots. I put Bowman in that class. What he did and didn't do was not okay but he's done the right things to atone. I think that because Kennedy and Beach think that

 

[Tobias Kahun]

It's very funny when the commitment to hate on Bowman leads people to assume something must be wrong with Kennedy because the alternative that maybe Bowman isn't a bad guy just can't be true

What's next? Will they come after Beach as well. Beach also has made amends with Bowman

After all the info coming out there are two main villians in this. One is of course Aldrich. The other one is John McDonaugh. He was Bowman's boss and told everyone he would deal with it, with the implication that everyone else drop the issue. There are other secondary villains who were the willful idiots. I put Bowman in that class. What he did and didn't do was not okay but he's done the right things to atone. I think that because Kennedy and Beach think that

Its also quite clear that alot of posters here have never worked in a company with a chain of command.

Theres processes to this.

Bowman reported it to his boss, who said he would take care of it.

 

[McDoused]

Dude- you think he did a smash up job driving the blackhawks off a cliff with 2 superstars I. Their prime is good management because he won 3 cups with a team he inherited?

This is true but one part that goes unmentioned is that Bowman was with the Hawks organization since 2001. He worked as a special assistant to the General Manager, Assistant General Manager and Director of Hockey Ops before he took over. So it's very likely that he had his fingerprints all over the team before he took over.

 

[McDoused]

So Sheldon Kennedy is risking his and his businesses reputation by putting his credibility and morals up for sale? That’s what some of you actually believe? Rather than the far less reasonable explanation that he’s actually spent time with Bowman and gotten to know him and genuinely supports the guy?

It’s starting to make sense now guys.. You know what, the Oilers probably paid Kennedy 2 years ago to take Bowman to pave the way for hiring him years later.

Don't waste your time. These are the same mouth breathers that thought Ernst and Young (a 50 billion dollar business) were taking bribes to rig the draft lottery.

 

[SupremeTeam16]

Everything Jackson does is measured and his decision making so far has been terrific so you gotta trust him on this one. The initial anger will die down, Bowman will get Draisaitl extended, the news cycle will reset and the outrage will fade during the quiet part of the summer. By the time the season rolls around people will just be excited for hockey again and will be focused on gearing up for a run.

I’m betting Jackson and Bowman are going to have lots of success both on and off the ice. The Oilers will do a lot of winning on the ice and the organization will do some good initiative and awareness work off the ice, as Jackson put it they’re going to build an elite organization on and off the ice.

 

[foshizzle]

Example A of the clown that didn’t bother to read the report, read the report and has poor reading comprehension, or read the report, but doesn’t have the intellectual capacity to understand the varying degrees of responsibility and error of the people involved.

Keep yelling at the clouds though, like you do. Be emotional before you have any idea what you’re talking about, like you do.

ironic you mention capacity to understand. Instead of arguing points you decide to go to personal attacks. You’re literally saying it wasn’t his responsibility. I’ll lay it out for you since you seem to lack the basics of humanity. If someone is raping someone, or sexually assaulting someone- you action that. You dont pass it off and wait 10 years. I can’t believe you went from calling it a mistake to now saying it fell outside of his purview. Just horrendously bad takes. Please tell your neighbours the limits of your responsibilities in case their house is on fire or someone attacks them (hey, you posted on HFboards their house is on fire- that’s the limit of your responsibility- someone else should call 911). Dude, I can’t listen to you defend this. I’m done.

 

[foshizzle]

Pretty sure Beach specifically requested that the police not be involved.

When someone is the victim of a sexual assault, you don't just run to the police or anyone else and spill the beans on their behalf. Especially so if they've asked you not to.

Yes you do, because otherwise someone else may be a victim. It’s an actual federal crime. Beach can choose to be part of the investigation or not. You still report it

 

[McDoused]

Its also quite clear that alot of posters here have never worked in a company with a chain of command.

Theres processes to this.

Bowman reported it to his boss, who said he would take care of it.

I dont get why people don't get this? It's not an easy thing to go over your managers head, especially when you don't have all the information. Bowman knows what he did was wrong now and has been working hard to show that.

ironic you mention capacity to understand. Instead of arguing points you decide to go to personal attacks. You’re literally saying it wasn’t his responsibility. I’ll lay it out for you since you seem to lack the basics of humanity. If someone is raping someone, or sexually assaulting someone- you action that. You dont pass it off and wait 10 years. I can’t believe you went from calling it a mistake to now saying it fell outside of his purview. Just horrendously bad takes. Please tell your neighbours the limits of your responsibilities in case their house is on fire or someone attacks them (hey, you posted on HFboards their house is on fire- that’s the limit of your responsibility- someone else should call 911). Dude, I can’t listen to you defend this. I’m done.

Also I don't get why people are mad at Bowman for "waiting for 10 years"? The allegations were brought to the attention of the HR department (albeit 3 weeks late). At that point it's out of his hands. I'm not super familiar with American laws so please correct me if I'm wrong. My understanding is that after Aldrich resigned, their was little the HR department or team could do. It would make sense that no further investigation was done unless they wanted to file charges against Aldrich. Typically, the victim(s) would file the charges or a grievance and it would be investigated by police as the HR department can't conduct investigations for non-employees.

 

[foshizzle]

I dont get why people don't get this? It's not an easy thing to go over your managers head, especially when you don't have all the information. Bowman knows what he did was wrong now and has been working hard to show that.



Also I don't get why people are mad at Bowman for "waiting for 10 years"? The allegations were brought to the attention of the HR department (albeit 3 weeks late). At that point it's out of his hands. I'm not super familiar with American laws so please correct me if I'm wrong. My understanding is that after Aldrich resigned, their was little the HR department or team could do. It would make sense that no further investigation was done unless they wanted to file charges against Aldrich. Typically, the victim(s) would file the charges and it would be investigated by police.

It’s a federal crime. This is beyond an HR issue. Anyone can report it to the police. The police investigate it. They would also make sure the dude being investigated doesn’t work with vulnerable people. Resignation does t excuse a crime

 

[SupremeTeam16]

Yes you do, because otherwise someone else may be a victim. It’s an actual federal crime. Beach can choose to be part of the investigation or not. You still report it

Lmao ok show me a federal prosecutor who is going to pursue a SA case with a victim who won’t be involved. These cases are hard enough to win as is when it’s often a he said she said situation. What is a prosecutor going to do, force Beach to testify and open him up to cross by the defense? That’s a really good look. If Beach doesn’t want to be involved or testify, that case is doa.

 

[TB12]

Sheldon Kennedy had similar experiences to the others in this case. Manipulators and abusers know exactly what to do to garner support. Kennedy was either paid (donations to his orgs) very handsomely to endorse Bowman and/or masterfully manipulated to flip.


You beat me to it.

Pretty bold claims to make about Mr. Kennedy and to impugn his reputation like that. Bordering on libelous almost.

 

[UpHere]

There has to be an ulterior motive to this hiring - i know the Oilers have not given two shits about the optics of who've they've traded for or signed in the past... it just seems odd they've hitched their wagon to someone who they knew would draw the ire of thousands of people... i'm gonna go ahead and believe that jackson is 5-heading this whole thing - stan bowman is not the guy that you will die on that hill for in a purely GM sense

 

[McDoused]

It’s a federal crime. This is beyond an HR issue. Anyone can report it to the police. The police investigate it. They would also make sure the dude being investigated doesn’t work with vulnerable people. Resignation does t excuse a crime

Did you red the summary of the Jenner and Block report yet? Bowman didn't know any of the specifics. All he knew was that their was an incident "underneath the sheets" that needed to be investigated. He didn't even know if it was consensual or not and was horrified to learn that when he read the report himself.

He should have asked more questions and followed up. He should have done more and then he would have been able to go to the police. He has to own his part in this and he's doing his best to try and make things right. Kyle Beach clearly wasn't ready to speak out at that time and bring these details to light. Beach clearly supports Bowman and the work he's doing. I dont think his involvement in this is nearly as bad as some fans seem to speculate. Theirs a big difference between trying to actively cover things up vs neglecting to follow up and do more. He knows that now and hopefully is a better person for it.

 

[McDoused]

There has to be an ulterior motive to this hiring - i know the Oilers have not given two shits about the optics of who've they've traded for or signed in the past... it just seems odd they've hitched their wagon to someone who they knew would draw the ire of thousands of people... i'm gonna go ahead and believe that jackson is 5-heading this whole thing - stan bowman is not the guy that you will die on that hill for in a purely GM sense

I think when it came down to it, Bowmans experience and winning pedigree are what Jackson coveted. He also thinks he's a progressive, forward thinking, collaborative and knowledgeable person.

Although his track record for trades isn't great, you can't deny he won 3 stanley cups and knows the day to day responsibilities more than any other candidate. If he didn't have all the baggage, I would imagine majority of fans would be fine with this hire or at least willing to see how it plays out.

 

[UpHere]

I think when it came down to it, Bowmans experience and winning pedigree are what Jackson coveted. He also thinks he's a progressive, forward thinking, collaborative and knowledgeable person.

Although his track record for trades isn't great, you can't deny he won 3 stanley cups and knows the day to day responsibilities more than any other candidate. If he didn't have all the baggage, I would imagine majority of fans would be fine with this hire or at least willing to see how it plays out.

that's the rub - i know this decision was not made lightly... there has to be more than stan bowman won three cups to make this worthwhile - there's less problematic potential GMs out there that fit the bill

 

[SupremeTeam16]

It’s a federal crime. This is beyond an HR issue. Anyone can report it to the police. The police investigate it. They would also make sure the dude being investigated doesn’t work with vulnerable people. Resignation does t excuse a crime

Again, without a cooperating victim it’s nearly impossible to prove a crime like this, it’s highly unlikely prosecutors would pursue. Without charges and a conviction they can’t do much and even if they could it would be difficult to keep a guy like Aldrich from re-offending. Both the US and Canada have big problems with recidivism, you may have heard about how many people in Canada are up in arms about bail reform due to the amount of violent crimes being committed by people on bail, many of them often repeat offenders. If police cant even stop convicts on bail from committing crimes I don’t have a lot of faith they’d be keeping tabs on Aldrich for years. The only way you stop him is by throwing him in jail which is where he should still be.

 

[bellagiobob]

Did you red the summary of the Jenner and Block report yet? Bowman didn't know any of the specifics. All he knew was that their was an incident "underneath the sheets" that needed to be investigated. He didn't even know if it was consensual or not and was horrified to learn that when he read the report himself.

He should have asked more questions and followed up. He should have done more and then he would have been able to go to the police. He has to own his part in this and he's doing his best to try and make things right. Kyle Beach clearly wasn't ready to speak out at that time and bring these details to light. Beach clearly supports Bowman and the work he's doing. I dont think his involvement in this is nearly as bad as some fans seem to speculate. Theirs a big difference between trying to actively cover things up vs neglecting to follow up and do more. He knows that now and hopefully is a better person for it.

I think if people actual read the Jenner and Block report, actually listened to Sheldon Kennedy's presser, I think that their viewpoint may soften a little bit. Not necessarily change, but will have a better understanding of the decision process. I'm still not in favor of the hire, but if I put on my progressive hat, I can understand why it was made. Jackson believes he is ahead of the curve on this, that there is no one better equipped than Bowman to deal with this type of situation should it arise again, and has the potential to be a leader and authority in the league in dealing with these matters going forward. Might be a stretch, but I think that's his reasoning for that part of the hire. I think he also sees Bowman who has experience in taking over a team on the cusp of a championship, and being at the helm of three SC wins, regardless of ones opinions on his trades and dismantling of the team afterwards. Again, not that I agree with it, but I can now wrap my head around why I think this was his choice. JJ is a pretty deep thinker and a smart guy, so will give the appropriate amount of time to judge his decision.

 

[McDoused]

that's the rub - i know this decision was not made lightly... there has to be more than stan bowman won three cups to make this worthwhile - there's less problematic potential GMs out there that fit the bill

Theirs lots of young and upcoming assistant GMs but honestly name a more experienced or proven general manager? The only one I can think of is Ken Holland who is 17 years older. Bowman knows the day to day and can run the team while Jackson handles the big stuff.

 

[UpHere]

Theirs lots of young and upcoming assistant GMs but honestly name a more experienced or proven general manager? The only one I can think of is Ken Holland who is 17 years older. Bowman knows the day to day and can run the team while Jackson handles the big stuff.

so is bowman just a puppet? Needs the job and will do whatever jackson tells him? would fit the ego bill i guess - just spitballin - i really don't care who does what if we win the Cup again

 

[TheNumber4]

I've been mulling this over ever since the announcement. And my gut instinct is to hate this hire with everything I got.

This is such a tone deaf move, of all the people on the planet, why this guy? What is it that Stan Bowman has that's so outstanding, that's it's worth the baggage this piece of shit human being carries?

Just why? What in the serious f***ing hell why? And this is from someone who has almost always been behind anything the team does with the most optimistic point of view for the Oilers I can think of.

Someone please help me here cause I'm lost and just don't see how this hiring is a good idea.

The hiring makes more sense when you read into what Bowman actually did. Negligent sure. Bad managing sure. But human POS? I don’t know if that counts. He didn’t rape anyone, Aldrich is the human POS here.

 

[AddyTheWrath]

Still crickets on how Bowman is a good GM on merit alone.

But keep crying about cancel culture and sensitivity without seeing the irony in your own posts.