[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by pylon

...anytime the mental health card is played, it is automatically assumed sympathy is required, terms like stunning and brave need to start being thrown around etc.

That's your assumption. These terms were never part of any statements made by the team about Dillon Dube.

If the cause of his mental health issues are in fact stemming from involvement in this incident, which in fairness, we do not know yet... I'm sorry, but the statement "Dillon Dube is taking a leave of absence from the team for personal reasons." Is as far as that statement should read. Because in the mean time, a ton of people now have to eat crow, and look like ass-hats if he in fact is involved in this. How many people on this very board were tying the similarity of his situation to Kylingtons, and making very sympathetic statements.

Which is not the fault of the team. If Dube did in fact take a medical leave for mental health reasons—which seems like exactly what happened—then the team is not culpable for the conclusions people draw on the basis of their factual statement about this being the case.

Just as fast as people want to see people canceled for transgressions far smaller than these accusations, there's another side is just as quick to look like the most sympathetically, sympathizing sympathizer the second mental health is thrown out there.

I am not sure what this has to do with anything, since the Flames did nothing more than issue a very general press statement about Dube's absence from the team.

You are fooling yourself if you don't think the team doesn't know exactly what the gravity of this situation is.

I have never once suggested that the team doesn't know the gravity of the current situation. Of course they do—probably better than most. However, it is much more difficult connecting the dots between what we think the team knew, and what we believe they should have—or, even could have done about it. Even if the Flames knew that changes were impending (and it is entirely likely that they did not) they are also legally bound by what they can or cannot say publicly about it.

I know it's a knitpick, but words are important. Perception is important. And the way the Flames statement reads makes this seem entirely different than what it actually may be.

Maybe to you, it did. It sure didn't to me. If you are offended by the statement, that's a "you" problem—it sure is not the fault of the team. Again, there is nothing within what was in the press release from which to draw anything about the team's knowledge, nor their feelings about the possibility of impending criminal charges in the London investigation. It's just not there.