NHL commissioner Gary Bettman met with former Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville, and will now meet with former Chicago assistant GM Kevin Cheveldayoff on Friday. What outcomes should we expect in the coming days? Kyle Beach said the NHLPA didn't help him after reaching out, so what kind of fallout will come from there? TSN Hockey Insiders Chris Johnston, Pierre LeBrun and Darren Dreger discuss this and more.
What can you tell us about the meeting between NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and Joel Quenneville?
It ended up not being something that came to light. There was no decision rendered here and there’s further discussion that needs to happen. It’s my understanding that all options remain on the table. He might have his contract terminated, he could be asked to resign, or there still could be a suspension at play here.
Another thing that’s been contemplated here is Friday’s game in Detroit and whether Joel Quenneville will be behind the bench. No final decision has been made but it was certainly discussed that he might sit it out as this process plays on.
Darren Dreger: Meanwhile there’s been a scheduling change involving Jets’ general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff and his meeting with NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. The Winnipeg Jets have confirmed that Cheveldayoff will meet with Bettman in New York City on Friday. The Jets pushed to have this meeting bumped up, it was originally scheduled for Monday but neither the team nor Cheveldayoff wanted to drag this through the weekend.
Jets ownership was also strongly behind moving up this meeting to Friday rather than Monday and commissioner Bettman has agreed.
What’s the fallout from the standpoint of the NHLPA and Donald Fehr?
I still think there are people around the game that have questions that are still unanswered about what other communication there might have been with Donald Fehr about this matter and what else could have been done. While I don’t think there’s a reason to think that Fehr, at this point, has to step down, I will tell you that I think some people still need some answers.
What kind of steps is the NHL taking in an effort to prevent anything like this from ever happening again down the road?
Will Brad Aldrich have his name removed from the Stanley Cup?
So in this particular case, what I’m told is, it is up to the Blackhawks to have a petition to the NHL to remove the name of Brad Aldrich from the Stanley Cup. As we speak right here on air, that has not happened. I think there is a sense that it certainly could happen and I hope I speak for everyone when I say, let’s hope it happens sooner rather than later.
Geno Reda: Getting back to Joel Quenneville, the commissioner said he would reserve judgment on next steps until after their meeting. The meeting is complete, so now we wait.