An NHL Player’s Association independently-commissioned investigation has found no “individual wrongdoing or institutional failures of policy or procedure” by its executive director Donald Fehr or others in ther handling of Kyle Beach’s allegations of sexual assault against Chicago BlackhawksBrad Aldrich was the then-video coach for 2010.
The 20-page review was posted by the NHLPA on Friday. It was created by Cozen O’Connor, a Toronto-based law company. While it found some miscommunications and misunderstandings, the NHLPA’s handling Beach’s allegations led to a conclusion that there was no evidence for “any individual or systematic failure.”
“After a thorough analysis of contemporaneous records,” Cozen O’Connor’s reported that “the policies, practices and procedures in place at the [players’]Union at the time and the recollections from each party to the contact with the NHLPA/SABH program, we are unable to identify any individual wrongdoings or institutional failures in policy or procedure by Fehr, NHLPA staff, or the SABH programme regarding Beach’s reporting.”
Cozen O’Connor claimed that the union’s review of Beach’s allegations included the review of “thousands of emails, phone records relevant to Beach’s claims, as well as controlling documents and policies for SABH”. [Substance Abuse and Behavioural Health]interview with eleven people, as well as the NHL Hotline and program.” Cozen O’Connor declined to interview Beach or another Blackhawks player who was in some way affected by the past.
Each of 32 NHL player representatives received a copy earlier this week. This group voted later to make the findings public.
Beach’s initial claims that he was sex assaulted by Aldrich during the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs led to the investigation into the role of the union and how it could have supported Beach. Beach, 32 years old, brought a negligence case against Chicago last year. It was settled in December. Prior to that, the Blackhawks released in October 2021 the findings of its independent investigation into Beach’s allegations conducted by the law firm Jenner & Block.
The report contained details about Fehr’s response to Beach’s allegations at the time. Fehr’s actions were investigated by the NHLPA.
Cozen O’Connor said that the NHLPA’s core disagreements were “sharply inconsistent accounts” provided by Bob Gurney, player agent, and Fehr. It was a conversation they had regarding Beach’s allegations as well as a conversation between Dr. Brian Shaw. [a psychologist, and program administrator with the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program]Beach.
According to the firm Gurney claimed that he called Fehr late December 2010, after Beach informed him that Aldrich had been appointed as a USA Hockey video coach in connection with a tournament later in 2010. Gurney believed that Fehr, who had just been named NHLPA Executive Director was interested in Beach’s concerns.
Gurney said to Cozen O’Connor’s investigators, that Aldrich was either a “pedophile”, “sexual predator”, but didn’t tell Fehr anything about what had allegedly transpired between Beach and Aldrich.
Investigators were denied any memory by Fehr of the call. This is in contrast to what he has done since Beach’s original allegations.
“Fehr, an expert lawyer, repeated the point that Gurney could have described Aldrich, or asked him to contact USA Hockey as a pedophile, or sexual predator.” Cozen O’Connor detailed this in his report. “Fehr insists that, had the incident been reported to him by Beach, he could have and would have taken — or agreed — to take further action, without being provided more details about the alleged incident.
A “exhaustive analysis of all Fehr’s emails over the same period” didn’t show any mention of Gurney. The review also included a detailed analysis of Fehr’s emails in the next ten years. This did not reveal any connection with Gurney. The report also found that Fehr never mentioned Gurney or Beach to anyone who interacted with him daily.
One incident in the Jenner & Block report that included Fehr related to another conversation between him and player agent Joe Resnick. Resnick, in an email dated April 18, 2011, stated to Fehr that he was aware that Beach had been informed by the executive director.
Resnick stated that he did not recall ever receiving a reply to Fehr’s email during the Cozen O’Connor interview. We also found no response in Fehr’s emails. Resnick did not also recall any follow up conversation with Fehr.
The report stated that Fehr acknowledged to us, as he did within the Jenner Report, receiving the email but had no recollection or follow-up with Resnick about the matter. Gurney does not recall having any conversations with Fehr about Aldrich other than the Jenner Report’s December 2010 call.
Cozen O’Connor ruled that the discussion between Dr. Shaw, Beach and Aldrich regarding allegations about USA Hockey’s past actions was a matter of miscommunication.
According to the report, “All parties involved managed not to leave these interactions without misapprehension.” “Gurney, Beach thought someone…had accepted responsibility for contacting USA Hockey. He believed that Dr. Shaw would contact the union or Beach’s agent to address Beach’s concerns. Resnick believed that he was sharing his concern about a coach that was unusual, bullying and inappropriate but not a sexual abuser.
Cozen O’Connor concluded that Fehr, given his legal background, would have known how to deal with serious allegations if they were communicated to him.
The report concluded that there was no evidence Fehr discussed the conversation with anyone outside of the NHLPA. This is in direct contradiction to Fehr’s practice of routinely and quickly assigning others to follow-up on matters of less importance.
Beach had been openly critical about Fehr’s inaction ever since he revealed himself to Rick Westhead as John Doe in an October interview.
Beach said that she had reported every detail to the NHLPA. She was then put in contact with Westhead. Don Fehr was contacted by two people, according to my belief. He would turn his back to the players, when his only job is to protect them at all cost. I don’t understand how that could be your leader. I don’t know how he could be in charge. If that’s his plan, he will tell you what to do when a player approaches you and tells him something.
Fehr issued his own statement on Beach’s ordeal on October 28, 2021.
Fehr stated that Kyle Beach had been through a terrible experience and showed courage by telling his story. “There is no doubt the system failed him in his time and we are part that system. In his media interview, Mr. Beach said that he had told someone at NHLPA about what happened several months later. He is referring a program doctor [Dr. Brian Shaw, a psychologist, and program administrator]With the NHL/NHLPA Player Assistance Program. This program is confidential between doctors and players, but the severity of the incident should have prompted us to take further action. The fact that it didn’t was a serious mistake. It is a serious failure. I am sorry.