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Former Chicago coach gives his account of player abuse allegations and it's not a good look for the team

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TJ Tucker
August 12, 2021  (1:07 PM)
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A former coach with the Chicago Blackhawks has provided his account of player abuse allegations against video coach Brad Aldrich back in 2010, and it does not paint the team in a positive light. Former skills coach Paul Vincent gave his account to investigators hired by the Blackhawks to look into the incident, and said he told them he took the allegations to the team's sports psychologist and director of security. A day later, he was called into a meeting that included president John McDonough, general manager Stan Bowman, vice president of hockey operations Al MacIsaac, and the sports psychologist.

"I come in and Al MacIsaac says to me, 'What do you know?'" Vincent said. "I said, 'The same thing I told [the sports psychologist and director of security].' And with that, Al MacIsaac did most of the speaking. He said, 'We've got it handled. You are assuming something happened and we're going to look into it. You don't need to look into it anymore.'"

Vincent said he advised the executives to report the alleged abuse to police.

"I did say to them I think you need to call the Chicago PD (Police Department) and have them quietly investigate," Vincent told the Jenner & Block investigators.

"That's when MacIsaac said, 'You don't need to worry about this. We'll take care of it You can leave now.' So I walk outside. Two of the coaches are still waiting for me, John Torchetti and Mike Haviland. I said, 'You won't believe what just happened.' I explained it. And we went off to dinner."

Vincent stated he spoke to both players who had made allegations against Aldrich before speaking to team management.

"They explain to me what happened," Vincent told the Jenner & Block lawyers. "I didn't need all the details. I knew that it was wrong. They told me that [Aldrich] had tried to touch their penis, wanted to touch their penis. That's all I needed to know. I said, 'It's not my spot. I'm not a police officer anymore. I will go to the proper people.'"

One of the former Blackhawks involved in the allegations is suing the team claiming he brought the allegations forward and nothing was done. Also involved in that lawsuit is a high school hockey player who was sexually assaulted by Aldrich after he left the Blackhawks. That person claims the team provided Aldrich with a letter of recommendation that got him his job with a high school hockey program in Michigan.

During the interview with investigators, Vincent said he also saw other behaviour from Aldrich that caused concern to him and other members of the coaching staff. For example, he said Aldrich brought interns into the players' dressing room after games to drink alcohol.

"Some of [the interns] looked younger, looked like minors and he was having drinks with them,» Vincent told the investigators.

Vincent said a Blackhawks coach whom Vincent did not identify spoke to Aldrich and told him that what he was doing was not appropriate.

Vincent also said that a 14-year-old boy routinely stayed at Aldrich's apartment during the 2010 season. Aldrich was apparently a close friend of the family. Vincent told investigators that boy has gone on to have a successful hockey career at the NHL level. He declined to name the person.

Vincent concluded his interview by saying the next thing he knew, Aldrich was gone.

"One day he was gone," Vincent said. "Normally when you win a Cup everybody gets an extension. He'd been broomed out, let go, fired."

Asked for his take on how the situation was handled, Vincent said all he knows is none of the allegations made it past the Chicago Blackhawks.

Source: TSN.ca