Joel Quenneville, former coach of the Chicago Blackhawks, has resigned from his post as coach of the Florida Panthers after meeting with the NHL's Gary Bettman. He was summoned to New York City to explain his role in the mishandling of sexual-abuse allegations made more than a decade ago by former Blackhawks’ minor league player Kyle Beach.Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images
Joel Quenneville resigned as coach of the Florida Panthers after meeting with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Thursday as the hockey world braces for further fallout from the Chicago Blackhawks’ sexual-abuse scandal.
Mr. Bettman will meet on Friday with one-time Blackhawk front-office official Kevin Cheveldayoff, now general manager of the Winnipeg Jets.
Mr. Quenneville and Mr. Cheveldayoff were summoned to New York City to explain their role in the mishandling of sexual-abuse allegations made more than a decade ago by former Blackhawks’ minor league player Kyle Beach. The Blackhawks were the subject of a shocking investigation that was made public this week by the Chicago law firm Jenner & Block.
The firm’s report, commissioned by the team, centres on alleged sexual assault against Mr. Beach by former Blackhawk video coach Brad Aldrich, and how Blackhawk executives failed to properly report the incident. Mr. Beach filed a lawsuit against the Blackhawks in May. The organization faces a second lawsuit from a former high-school student whom Mr. Aldrich later was convicted of assaulting in Michigan.
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Mr. Quenneville was the team’s head coach in 2010 and Mr. Cheveldayoff was assistant general manager. They and other club officials have been waiting for weeks to address the allegations at the time for fear it could derail the Blackhawks’ playoff run.
The Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup that year and on two other occasions during Mr. Quenneville’s tenure.
The matter has already cost Chicago general manager Stan Bowman his job and has led to other resignations, as well as the team being fined US$2-million by the NHL. The Blackhawks have issued an apology to Mr. Beach and said they were open to talking to him and his lawyers about a settlement.
Mr. Beach, who identified himself as the former Blackhawks player during a gut-wrenching interview on Wednesday with Rick Westhead of TSN, issued a statement on Twitter on Thursday.
“Although the results of the private investigation have been released, and the Blackhawks have apologized, my battle is really just beginning,” Mr. Beach said.
“While I take the time to reflect and continue the healing process, it is a reminder that this is not about me as an individual. This is to promote open communication that will facilitate change for the future, to promote safety as well as the health and well-being of society as a whole.”
According to the report, Mr. Beach was the victim not only of sexual abuse but of institutional failure at every level.
“As tragic as it is, it didn’t surprise me,” said Gretchen Kerr, a dean and professor at the University of Toronto. She is an expert in the maltreatment of athletes. “I do see a uniqueness to sport. Regardless of whether it is at the professional or amateur level, there is an over-emphasis and almost singular focus on winning.”
Jenner & Block, the law firm that conducted the investigation, interviewed 139 witnesses and found the allegations were discussed at a meeting among team executives on May 23, 2010. According to the report, Blackhawk officials decided not to investigate Mr. Beach’s claims because it feared players would become distracted and also because they feared negative publicity.
“Seldom before have we had such an explicit admission,” Ms. Kerr said. “That has always been the undercurrent that we suspected.”
Jonathan Toews, the Blackhawks’ captain, made a passionate defence of Mr. Bowman on Wednesday. Mr. Toews also said he was unaware of the allegations until the following training camp.
“I wish I could have done something,” Mr. Toews said. He and Patrick Kane are the lone members of the 2010 Chicago team that remain on the roster “My heart goes out to Kyle for what he dealt with. It’s not an excuse looking back, but the truth is a lot of us were focused on just playing hockey.”
Kyle Beach #12 of the Chicago Blackhawks skates in a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the NHL Rookie Tournament on Sept. 14, 2010, at the John Labatt Centre in London, Ont. Mr. Beach was 20 when he was called up by the Blackhawks during the Stanley Cup playoffs.Claus Andersen/Getty Images
Mr. Beach was 20 when he was called up by the Blackhawks during the Stanley Cup playoffs. He had been the team’s first-round draft pick two years earlier.
It was during that time that Mr. Beach said he was sexually assaulted, harassed and threatened by Mr. Aldrich.
Mr. Beach filed a lawsuit against the Blackhawks this summer, after which the club engaged Jenner & Block to review its handling of the situation. In the lawsuit and documents that were released by the investigators on Tuesday, Mr. Beach was only known as John Doe 1.
In the interview with Mr. Westhead, he said: “I felt I was alone and there was nobody I could turn to for help.”
He said he told his mother shortly after that he had been assaulted.
“My mom cried for days,” Mr. Beach said. “She felt responsible. She felt she should have protected me and there was nothing she could do.”
Mr. Aldrich was called into a meeting with the Blackhawks’ director of HR after the season was over. He was given an opportunity to resign rather than to have an investigation undertaken. Mr. Aldrich tendered his resignation, but continued to be paid for weeks, was given a severance package, received a Stanley Cup ring and had his name engraved on the trophy.
Mr. Quenneville penned a recommendation letter for him, and Mr. Aldrich subsequently received paid and unpaid positions with USA Hockey, the University of Notre Dame, Miami University in Ohio, and Houghton High School in Houghton, Mich. While in Houghton, in 2013, Mr. Aldrich was arrested and pled guilty to fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a minor.
Mr. Beach’s raw and painful disclosure has elicited an outpouring of empathy from all corners. He has heard from fellow athletes, victims and from people from all walks of life.
Sheldon Kennedy, the former NHL player and child advocate who was sexually assaulted by his coach when he was a member of the Swift Current Broncos, said Thursday that “taught skills” are required so that everyone can have a clear understanding of how to properly deal with such cases.
“Posters and buttons and policies and procedures don’t change culture,” he said from Lucky Lake, Sask. “Until sport makes this a priority as they do winning, they’ll never have the change that I think people expect from them.”
Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe and Edmonton Oilers’ defenceman Tyson Barrie both spoke about him during postgame interviews on Wednesday.
“The courage that he showed by stepping up and being a voice for victims is incredibly brave,” Mr. Keefe said after an overtime win in Chicago. “It’s much too late, but the hockey world gives our support to Kyle.”
Mr. Barrie recalled playing against Mr. Beach when both were still amateurs in the Western Hockey League.
“He was a great player and a tough kid,” Mr. Barrie said. “It goes to show it can happen to anybody. Good on him for coming out. If he can save someone from that experience or help somebody who has gone through it, that’s unbelievable. That has no place in our game or our world.”
The National Hockey League Players’ Association issued a statement on behalf of its executive director Donald Fehr late Wednesday night. In it, Mr. Fehr apologized to Mr. Beach.
“Kyle Beach has been through a horrific experience and has shown true courage in telling his story,” Mr. Fehr said. “There is no doubt that the system failed to support him in his time of need, and we are part of that system.”
With a report from The Canadian Press
Marty Klinkenberg