NEWSLETTER
On Monday afternoon, in the midst of a free agency bonanza, the NHL made some other news. Former Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville and general manager Stan Bowman were fully reinstated by the league, allowing them to pursue job opportunities.
Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff has already reported Bowman is a front-runner for the Edmonton Oilers’ vacant GM position. Ken Holland stepped away at the end of his contract.
From the NHL:
The National Hockey League today announced that, effective immediately, Stan Bowman, Al MacIsaac and Joel Quenneville are eligible to seek employment in the NHL. For more than the last two and a half years, these individuals have been ineligible to work for any NHL team as a result of their inadequate response upon being informed in 2010 of allegations that Blackhawks’ Player, Kyle Beach, had been assaulted by the Club’s video coach.
While it is clear that, at the time, their responses were unacceptable, each of these three individuals (Messrs. Bowman, MacIsaac and Quenneville) has acknowledged that and used his time away from the game to engage in activities which, not only demonstrate sincere remorse for what happened, but also evidence greater awareness of the responsibilities that all NHL personnel have, particularly personnel who are in positions of leadership. Moreover, each has made significant strides in personal improvement by participating in myriad programs, many of which focused on the imperative of responding in effective and meaningful ways to address alleged acts of abuse. The League expects that they will continue this commitment in any future capacity with the NHL and/or one of our Clubs.
While Clubs are free to discuss potential employment opportunities with Messrs. Bowman, MacIsaac and Quenneville effective immediately, they will not be permitted to enter into new employment relationships with any of these individuals until on or after Wednesday, July 10, 2024.
