Brad Aldrich case: Blackhawk appointed former prosecutor to investigate

Weeks after filing a lawsuit against the Chicago Blackhawks in the Brad Aldrich case, the Illinois organization has hired a former US attorney to conduct an independent investigation.

• Read also: Black Hawks: Disturbing Testimonies of Brad Aldrich

That’s what CEO Danny Wirts reportedly revealed to the team’s employees in an internal letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Athletic on Monday.

The alleged incidents occurred during the 2009-2010 season. At that time, two players told skill coach Paul Vincent of crimes of a sexual nature that had been the victims. The latter then alerted the team’s crew, which decided not to file a police complaint after that.

He was fired at the end of the season after winning the Stanley Cup, and Aldrich—who had been assistant coach—became director of hockey operations at Miami University in Ohio. A few years later, he pleaded guilty to alleging sexual abuse of a minor.

“We would like to assure you that we take the allegations in these lawsuits very seriously,” Wirts said in the post. They do not in any way reflect the culture or values ​​of this organization.”

Reed Shar, of Jenner & Block, will be responsible for this investigation.

The Black Hawks’ move came after a lot of talk about the Aldrich story in the past few days. Several former players in the squad openly criticized the handling of the situation by the management at the time.

“The management should be in jail,” former team defender Brent Sobel wrote on Twitter. National Hockey League [LNH] It shows its true colors. Gary [Bettman] Nobody cares but himself. It’s absolutely disgusting that the NHL isn’t doing anything.”

“I was playing for the Philadelphia Flyers against the Black Hawks in the final in 2010,” said Dan Carcello. We heard whispers about what Aldrich had done. It’s hard to believe that most people working in the organization don’t know.

The current Montreal Canadiens general manager, Mark Bergiveen, was Black Hawk’s director of personnel in 2010. He said Sunday he was unaware of the allegations against his then-teammate.

“Recently, there was a meeting I heard about that was held in Chicago. He said in a video conference I wasn’t part of any meeting and wasn’t involved in the decision. I wasn’t aware of anything that was happening in that regard at the time. .

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman was also questioned about the issue on Monday, as he interviewed the media on the sidelines of Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals.

These are allegations and we will await the results of the independent investigator, who has nothing to do with the Blackhawks or the NHL. […] “We will then decide if we need to do something about it,” the commissioner said.