Seravalli: NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr under fire

Another enormous domino fell in the wake of the Chicago Blackhawks’ sexual assault cover-up on Thursday when former coach Joel Quenneville resigned as coach of the Florida Panthers after this week’s investigation report revealed he actively advocated to suppress reporting of the assault of player Kyle Beach by video coach and serial sexual predator Brad Aldrich until after the 2010 Stanley Cup Final.

Will there be another?

Winnipeg Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff was cleared of any punishment by NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Friday. Bettman confirmed Cheveldayoff was the lowest-ranking staff member in the room on May 23, 2010 – when Chicago’s front office met and determined they would prioritize the team’s quest for the Stanley Cup over the safety and well-being of team members. Bettman said it would be unfair to paint Cheveldayoff with the “same broad brush” and he could not “assign to him responsibility for the club’s actions, or inactions,” adding that Cheveldayoff’s forthright and credible approach helped.

Cheveldayoff is the only man in the room to still be working in the NHL: GM Stan Bowman, president and CEO John McDonough, EVP of business operations Jay Blunk, SVP of hockey operations Al MacIsaac and now Quenneville are all out of jobs.

Compared to Quenneville and Cheveldayoff, the level of scrutiny has been quite low on the role NHL Players’ Association executive director Donald Fehr played in the investigation’s report.

The temperature has been turned up on Fehr, though, now under increasing fire both internally and externally upon closer inspection of the Jenner & Block report.

Sources tell Daily Faceoff that internal support for Fehr among NHLPA staff has waned in light of Fehr’s “lack of recollection” surrounding the contact that was made with him in connection with the incident.

There have been internal questions raised as to whether Fehr would or should survive the week at the helm of the player’s union.

“I know I reported every single detail to an individual at the NHLPA, who I was put in contact with after I believe two different people talked to Don Fehr,” Beach said in an emotional interview this week, revealing himself publicly as the victim. “For [Fehr] to turn his back on the players when his one job is to protect the players at all costs, I don’t know how that can be your leader.”

The crux of the issue: is Fehr systematically complicit in allowing Aldrich to continue to move freely in the hockey community as a sexual predator?

According to the investigation’s findings, Fehr was contacted in multiple instances by different parties and failed to act.

Fehr was officially hired by the NHLPA on Dec. 18, 2010 – more than six months after Beach was assaulted in Chicago.

Shortly after assuming office, the report says Fehr was contacted by a “confidant” of Beach, who was “upset that Aldrich appeared to have a position with USA Hockey.” Aldrich ended up working with the U.S. women’s Under-18 team at their World Championship.

“[Beach] did not want Aldrich to ‘keep doing this’ to other people, in particular kids, and asked the confidant to help,” the report read.

At the time of the assault in May 2010, Beach was not an NHLPA dues-paying member, though he was on an NHL roster by virtue of his playoff recall as a “Black Ace,” or practice squad player. NHL players pay union dues for each day on the roster during the regular season.

“The confidant recalled that Fehr responded that he knew people at USA Hockey, that the NHLPA would look into the situation, and that the NHLPA could offer support,” the report read. “The confidant recalled that Fehr suggested that [Beach] could speak to an NHLPA-affiliated therapist even though [Beach] was not an NHLPA member.”

When interviewed on Oct. 7, 2021 as part of the investigation, “Fehr stated that he did not recall a conversation with [Beach’s] confidant, although he did not deny that such a conversation occurred.”

Approximately four months after first being contacted by Beach’s “confidant,” another “professional acquaintance” reached out to Fehr via email on April 18, 2011.

Daily Faceoff has confirmed that both the “confidant” of Beach and the “professional acquaintance” of another player referenced in the Jenner & Block report are actually NHLPA Certified Agents. Player agents are among the lifeblood of the union and one of Fehr’s most important constituencies.

According to documents obtained in the investigation, the “professional acquaintance” agent wrote to Fehr in an email on April 18, 2011:

“I know you have spoken with [Beach’s confidant] regarding an incident with [Beach] and a staff member during the Stanley Cup playoffs last year. [Another player] was involved as well and I got him in touch with [a therapist affiliated with the NHLPA] approximately 2 weeks ago; however, I did want to have a follow up with yourself.”

According to the report, the NHLPA did provide Beach with a therapist in the fall of 2010, who when interviewed said Beach “met or spoke with Beach at least once,” but did not have any records.

The NHLPA-affiliated therapist, whose name was not disclosed in the report, should also be under fire for his inaction in reporting Aldrich to authorities. Sources tell Daily Faceoff the therapist’s affiliation with the NHLPA may be terminated as a result of the report.

Still, whether Beach received counseling or enough help via the NHLPA, is not really the crux of the issue.

Fehr was not part of the cover-up. He was not working for the NHLPA when the Blackhawks egregiously failed. There is question about exactly what details were presented to Fehr by either agent that would or should trigger a response and action from Fehr. Was he provided a gory description or simply told there was an incident? It is also unclear if the NHLPA-affiliated therapist informed Fehr of anything, which was not part of the investigation’s purview.

No matter, there is little doubt Fehr was negligent and now culpable in botching the follow-up – by asking more questions, informing USA Hockey or informing proper authorities.

After resigning from the Blackhawks in 2010, Aldrich went on to work with USA Hockey, the Univ. of Notre Dame, Miami University of Ohio and Houghton (Mich.) High School’s hockey teams. In Oct. 2013, Aldrich was criminally charged in Houghton, Mich., with third and fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct involving a student. He was convicted in Dec. 2013 of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct and was sentenced to nine months in Houghton County Jail and five years of probation for his sexual assault on a high school hockey player.

The NHLPA has not presented any indication that Fehr pursued or attempted to pursue the matter further. When interviewed by Jenner & Block investigators, Fehr said that he did not recall the conversations or the email, but did not deny that they occurred or were delivered.

When asked for further comment, the NHLPA pointed to a statement by Fehr delivered to media inboxes at 11:53 p.m. ET on Wednesday after Beach levied his criticism of Fehr:

“Kyle Beach has been through a horrific experience and has shown true courage in telling his story. There is no doubt that the system failed to support him in his time of need, and we are part of that system.

“In his media interview, Mr. Beach stated that several months after the incident he told someone at the NHLPA the details of what happened to him. He is referring to one of the program doctors with the NHL/NHLPA player assistance program. While this program is confidential between players and the doctors, the grave nature of this incident should have resulted in further action on our part. The fact that it did not was a serious failure. I am truly sorry, and I am committed to making changes to ensure it does not happen again.”

It’s important to point out no person involved in the Blackhawks’ sexual assault allegation – from the Chicago organization, NHL, NHLPA or Quenneville – has made themselves available for public question aside from the victim.

NHLPA sources told Daily Faceoff the waning internal support for Fehr may be a blend of both blame for his unquestioned mishandling of this situation – coupled with the general desire for a new voice in leadership.

Now 73, Fehr was hired in 2010 to stabilize the NHLPA and prepare for an upcoming lockout and Collective Bargaining Agreement as an experienced labor law expert and war-time general. Since then, Fehr has collected more than $30 million USD in salary, extended a CBA, negotiated a new CBA in 2020, and is now working into a new six-year period of labor peace without a clear succession plan in place.

Will this week’s important investigation findings be enough to push Fehr out the door? Would Fehr even go quietly, or instruct his trusted divisional representative staff to quell any questions as they’ve previously been deployed?

These are the questions being debated internally.

Only the player-led Executive Board can oust Fehr based on the NHLPA’s organizational structure. It’s still unclear whether the Executive Board, comprised of one voting player representative from each of the 32 teams, will move to conduct a further inquiry or place pressure on Fehr to become the next domino to fall.

[Story has been updated to reflect that Aldrich did not work at the World Junior Hockey Championship in Buffalo in 2011, but rather the Under-18 Women’s World Championship on behalf of USA Hockey.]