[News] Stan Bowman resigns after 2010 sexual abuse investigation

[curves2000]

I have a feeling that Bowman stepped down and that will be it for the repercussions hockey wise. Right or wrong, the pound of flesh has been extracted and stern warning for future conduct will be made very very clear.

If other players named in this report were to have been made to step down, it would have already happened I assume. This isn't a good look but I do think there will be policies in place for future action and how to handle these scenarios in the best way possible.

I know there is a whole lot of chest thumping going on in this thread about what each of us would do in specific scenarios but at the end of the day, let's be honest. Some of these people are or were considered lower level employee's in organizations worth hundreds of millions of dollars, with massive operations, budgets, responsibilities and wealthy businessman as owners who are very very powerful politically, economically and more. That's a different animal.

A lot of people I know in the corporate world have fancy titles and barely the authority to order pencils and staples let alone deal or be involved with sex assault scenarios. This notion that some people in this thread would have done this and that is also strange to me as they probably don't have the power to take care of the situation themselves. A lot of corporate manager types don't even have the power to hire and fire anymore, everything does through HR.

It's a sad sad and brutal situation for the victim involved and a bad look for the sports world but let's not get ahead of ourselves with our own belief about what we would really do in that situation if we were some of the lower level players.

[OptimalTates]

Originally Posted by curves2000

Some of these people are or were considered lower level employee's in organizations worth hundreds of millions of dollars, with massive operations, budgets, responsibilities and wealthy businessman as owners who are very very powerful politically, economically and more. That's a different animal.

A lot of people I know in the corporate world have fancy titles and barely the authority to order pencils and staples let alone deal or be involved with sex assault scenarios.

This was literally a meeting with his bosses to decide what, if anything, to do. The general manager was there asking for input. The guy who could fire him for not liking what shoes he was wearing. These guys decided that the chance at the Cup was more important.

I feel like your downplaying this significantly by acting like they had no power.

[SuperMatt18]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

If you believe the report, Quenneville should be fired.

And if you believe the report, Quenneville lied to the press.

If you believe Quenneville (and not the report), then he was the least in touch HC of any team ever. His entire coaching staff knew and he didn’t?

I’m not sure why you are nitpicking about his level of knowledge, or while you are glossing over his glowing recommendation.

Yup and let's not act like JQ doesn't have power here.

If he walks into that meeting and says "This guy can't be on our coaching staff anymore, doesn't matter if we are in the playoffs" then the guy would have been suspended and probably fired.

He is just as guilty as any others in terms of covering this up.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by PepsiFree

Because I believe that just judgement is more important than careless blame, even if it's less rewarding emotionally.

I believe there's enough cause for him to be fired and as I said, if that's what happens, it will be the right outcome. The only issue I'm taking is a guy like Q being seen and treated as equal to guys like McDonough and Bowman. And guys like Toews being casually lumped in as potential liars who had responsibility and must have known.

Who is treating them equally?

[GordonBlue]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Who is treating them equally?

I'm one.
For example, I think Q should be let go from his job.

[sureLoss]

Fact that JQ is coaching tonight leads me to believe that Bettman isn't considering firing or a suspension. I am predicting that at most JQ gets is a fine.

[PepsiFree]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Who is treating them equally?

Multiple people, read this thread and the other. Multiple statements about how everyone in the room was equally to blame. And it's not just that. Statements that place other people, like Bergevin, in the crosshairs. Misleading tweets. People misrepresenting exactly what these guys are likely guilty of doing. And comments like yours casting doubt on players like Toews who are not mentioned in any fashion in the report. Stuff like "I'm not saying he's a liar but he's saying the same thing another liar said" is, in your words, is too cute by half. Comments like that are purposely to cast doubt on guys like Toews. Why?

I don't entirely care about disputing each individual lack of nuance or fairness. But don't act like every comment here is accurate and fair.

Judge these guys for what, exactly, they did and didn't do. And there's enough comments here that don't reflect that approach at all for me to think you're just playing stupid.

I'm aware the focus is more on guys like Q, Chevy, and current players because they're still employed and punishment still needs to be delivered based on their involvement, but don't act like they aren't being treated equally in their involvement.

[FlamesAddiction]

The press the NHL is getting about this pretty much demands that the NHL puts some heads on the block. They don't want to be the league where coaches can rape their players and they sweep it under the rug.

I realize the franchise was fined, but I don't think basically charging them a fee for that is nearly enough.

[Ashasx]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

Fact that JQ is coaching tonight leads me to believe that Bettman isn't considering firing or a suspension. I am predicting that at most JQ gets is a fine.

embarrassing

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Who is treating them equally?

Everyone who says that everyone involved in the May 23 meeting should automatically be canned.

It seems that at the time of the meeting there was a lot of ambiguity/uncertainty about EXACTLY what had happened, but that there was certainly something concerning that required careful investigation. Since we'll never know exactly how much detail was presented in the meeting, it's pretty tough to pass total judgment on the participants' opinions at that time (FWIW I think we know enough to say JQ's opinion was bad...I'm just not sure it was heinous).

I also think it's likely that management wanted to limit JQ's involvement to leave him focused on the job of coaching...ie. "we want you to be aware, but don't worry, we'll handle it".


I've read most of the report now...everything I saw indicated the Blackhawks did not provide any references for Aldrich...can someone point me to that or the stuff about JQ writing a reference letter?

[dino7c]

Just a reminder Peters lost his career for saying "turn off the n-word music" 10 years ago

Sorry the Panthers are having a good year but this guy has to go, he swept it under the rug. Then recommended the guy for another job where he could do the same thing.

If he was still with the Hawks he would be gone, shouldn't change because he is with a different team

[Northendzone]

stunning that q is behind the bench tonight.

i agree that all of those involved in that meeting should be fired. one would think that enough issues were raised that these guys should have been asking more questions to get a full understanding of what went on. But instead, they did the historical hockey move and did what was best for the team to win.

[Vinny01]

I kind of feel like if Chevy and Quenneville somehow survive the initial storm of getting fired by their owner or Bettman will eventually have to step down as these guys are rightfully in the crosshairs of being “cancelled”

[Saqe]

Originally Posted by dino7c

Just a reminder Peters lost his career for saying "turn off the n-word music" 10 years ago

Sorry the Panthers are having a good year but this guy has to go, he swept it under the rug. Then recommended the guy for another job where he could do the same thing.

If he was still with the Hawks he would be gone, shouldn't change because he is with a different team

This isn't true from what I've read. At this point there isn't any hard evidence that he knew what was going on, and he certainly didn't know the story to the full extent.

Also the recommendation rumor is balony, they were generic evaluation reports that were made of several coaches in the organization in similar fashion. None were signed by Q. Also the investigators followed up Aldrich in his future jobs and he never used any recommendation letter from the Hawks.

All in all it seems there isn't much to make a case against Q. Too many conflicting stories and his own recollection that "something happened" but he wasn't told what.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by sureLoss

Fact that JQ is coaching tonight leads me to believe that Bettman isn't considering firing or a suspension. I am predicting that at most JQ gets is a fine.

Oh you....you are like my compatriot in pessimism.

I'd actually be surprised if JQ even gets a fine.

My (admittedly skeptical) opinion of this is: "Stan Bowman has retired..."

*dusts off hands*

Professional sports is an awful and toxic place. Amateur sports is probably worse. People should never, in any way, allow their children to idolize these people.

[GioforPM]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

Everyone who says that everyone involved in the May 23 meeting should automatically be canned.

It seems that at the time of the meeting there was a lot of ambiguity/uncertainty about EXACTLY what had happened, but that there was certainly something concerning that required careful investigation. Since we'll never know exactly how much detail was presented in the meeting, it's pretty tough to pass total judgment on the participants' opinions at that time (FWIW I think we know enough to say JQ's opinion was bad...I'm just not sure it was heinous).

I also think it's likely that management wanted to limit JQ's involvement to leave him focused on the job of coaching...ie. "we want you to be aware, but don't worry, we'll handle it".

I've read most of the report now...everything I saw indicated the Blackhawks did not provide any references for Aldrich...can someone point me to that or the stuff about JQ writing a reference letter?

Oh, I’m not saying they all shouldn’t be fired from their present positions. But some of them may actually warrant more than that - they maybe should be personally liable to the victims, along with the organization.

On the recommendation - it’s mentioned in the report.

I n his last performance evaluation, dated June 29, 2010 (after Aldrich had separated from the team), but unsigned by Quenneville and Aldrich, Quenneville wrote: “Aldrich did a great job for the Coaching staff in preparing us for all of our meetings and coordinating several tasks that we forward his way. Brad has several people relying on him at the same moment and has a way of deflecting and accommodating everyone at once … Congrats on winning the Stanley Cup!”

[mile]

https://twitter.com/user/status/1453437988189315074

[powderjunkie]

Originally Posted by GioforPM

Oh, I’m not saying they all shouldn’t be fired from their present positions. But some of them may actually warrant more than that - they maybe should be personally liable to the victims, along with the organization.

On the recommendation - it’s mentioned in the report.

I n his last performance evaluation, dated June 29, 2010 (after Aldrich had separated from the team), but unsigned by Quenneville and Aldrich, Quenneville wrote: “Aldrich did a great job for the Coaching staff in preparing us for all of our meetings and coordinating several tasks that we forward his way. Brad has several people relying on him at the same moment and has a way of deflecting and accommodating everyone at once … Congrats on winning the Stanley Cup!”

Unsigned performance evaluations...not signed reference letter as has been oft stated.

The rest of the paragraph you quoted is also relevant:

When interviewed, Quenneville stated that he did not recall whether he wrote the June 29, 2010 evaluation of Aldrich, or if he knew whether Aldrich had been separated at the time, but did not dispute that he may have written the evaluation.58 He further stated that the review looked to him like something he would write.59 Additional performance evaluations of coaches dated June 29, 2010, also unsigned by Quenneville, were similarly written and contain the same language congratulating the employee on the Stanley Cup win.

In other words...we won the friggin' Stanley Cup...we can mail-in the performance reviews this year.

Perf review dated June 29. Aldrich already had his 'resignation' meeting with HR and outside counsel on June 16. Did Q bother following up (this might have been a good reminder)? Or were these anything more than a formality that he didn't even bother to sign? Was he instructed to just continue business as usual..."the Aldrich situation has been dealt with".

Or did Q order someone to deal with personnel files...or was it someone else in the org...

The three evaluations we located were unsigned Microsoft Word documents stored in electronic folders; because we were unable to locate Aldrich’s personnel file, we cannot say with certainty that the evaluations we located were the final versions or were in fact ever finalized, though no one to whom we showed the unsigned evaluations suggested they were materially different from final versions.

Let's not forget who the real monster is here:

Several former players explained that they enjoyed speaking to Aldrich because Aldrich informed players in advance if they had a chance to make the game lineup.65

Seems like he may have really targetted the fringe players whom he'd actually have some power over.

[neo45]

I think “mailing in the performance reviews” of his staff when one just assaulted his players is kind of WHY the heat is on Q right now

[Muffins]

Originally Posted by mile

https://twitter.com/user/status/1453437988189315074

"I know people there" and "unfortunate incident"

Swing and a miss Dave......yikes.