Panthers, Jets facing same decision

If one thing was proven abundantly clear about the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks management team and coaching staff, it was that winning, and maybe more importantly opening up a championship revenue stream, was more important than being decent. 

Now two other NHL front offices have to make the same prioritization in the fallout from the explosive and upsetting announcement delivered Tuesday from law firm Jenner & Block.

After previously denying they had any knowledge of the incident involving disgraced former video coach and felon Bradley Aldrich, the independent investigation into the matter revealed that both Joel Quenneville, the current head coach of the Florida Panthers, and Kevin Cheveldayoff, now the Winnipeg Jets general manager, were well aware of the allegations at the time. 

They were among seven members of hockey operations team involved in a meeting to discuss the incident and next steps in the days after the alleged sexual assault occurred.

In the case of Quenneville, he was among those outspoken about how the incident, and the escalation of the matter, could affect the team’s chances on the 2010 postseason run.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman says he plans to meet with both Quenneville and Cheveldayoff about the findings from the report and their roles in the organization’s gross mishandling of the incident, but it shouldn’t even make it that far. 

Because if the Panthers and Jets continue to stand by these hockey men, they are making the exact same decision that Chicago made more than 11 years ago, which is that winning supersedes morality.

It appears the Panthers are leaning that way, or at least waiting until Quenneville meets with the NHL following Wednesday’s game versus Boston, to make a decision.

Florida is in an eerily similar position to that of Chicago. No, the Panthers aren’t on the doorstep of winning a championship six games into the season, but they are starting on a path toward maybe their best-ever season at 6-0. 

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