Should NHL commissioner talk to former Chicago coach Joel Quenneville and GM Stan Bowman about a possible return to the league? Take our Twitter poll @MattCNews

With the Stanley Cup Final over, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman faces a potential public relations headache.

Bettman said he’d talk to former Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville and general manager Stan Bowman after the playoffs about possibly returning to the league. He must reinstate Quenneville or Bowman for either to take another job with a team.

Bowman resigned as Blackhawks GM and Quenneville as Florida Panthers coach in October 2021 after an investigation into Chicago's 2010 sexual assault scandal revealed their roles in the team mishandling the situation.

Bowman and Quenneville both were in positions of authority with the Blackhawks when allegations surfaced that video coach Brad Aldrich sexually assaulted prospect Kyle Beach during Chicago’s postseason run to the first of three Stanley Cups over six seasons. Neither took immediate action against Beach’s complaint. Arguably, they tried to dust it under the rug.

Bowman resigned on Oct. 26, 2021, immediately after an investigation into the Aldrich incident was released. Quenneville stepped down as Florida’s coach two days later after meeting with Bettman. Quenneville had nearly three years and $15 million remaining on his contract with the Panthers when he resigned.

Bettman fined the Blackhawks $2 million – an amount he called significant — and stood by a decision to let Quenneville coach one more game with Florida before he met with him and the second-winningest coach in NHL history agreed to resign.

Technically, the NHL did not suspend either Bowman or Quenneville.

The report, which Blackhawks CEO Danny Wirtz called “both disturbing and difficult to read,” was released by the franchise. Former federal prosecutor Reid Schar, who led the investigation by Chicago-based law firm Jenner & Block, said the firm found no evidence that Wirtz or his father, Rocky, who owns the team, were aware of the allegations before a lawsuit by Beach’s was brought to their attention.

Quenneville and others in the organizations were accused of trying to push the incident to the side and “avoid distractions” while the Blackhawks eliminated the San Jose Sharks in the 2010 Western Conference Finals. Chicago went on to beat Philadelphia for the Cup.

Aldrich resigned after the 2010 championship run, but assaulted others in subsequent hockey jobs. He eventually was convicted for assaulting a high school player and sentenced to prison. https://apnews.com/article/nhl-sports-chicago-lawsuits-michigan-753fa0cee7dd745ee14bdc32dee7e88e

Different Hockey Resumés

The Beach affair notwithstanding, Quenneville and Bowman have different hockey legacies.

He 64-year-old Quenneville has a regular-season coaching record of 696-572-77-150 (OTL) in 1,768 games over 25 seasons. He spent 11 with Chicago before he was replaced by Jeremy Colliton 15 games into the 2018-19 season.

Chicago was 6-6-3 at the time. The switch, seen as being orchestrated by Bowman, included an elaborate press event at the Fifth Third Arena with Rocky Wirtz, then-president John McDonough and Bowman on the dias.

Quenneville joined Florida for the 2019-20 season. He was in his third season with the Panthers and had them off to a 7-0 start in 2021-22 when he resigned,

Quenneville’s coaching career followed 13 years as a rugged, stay-at-home defenseman with five teams.

Bowman’s record is different.

He was named the Blackhawks ninth GM on July 14, 2009, following a perceived power play when Dale Tallon was pushed out of the job. Tallon and his staff were generally credited with acquiring the Blackhawks core talent – Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith, Corey Crawford, Brent Seabrook – that carried the team to its three Cups.

Bowman added the title of president of hockey operations in December 2020.

But Bowman’s record of talent acquisition and grooming sagged after a good start. 

Two forwards, second-rounder Brandon Saad and fifth-rounder Andrew Shaw, were impactful picks in 2011. Sharp-shooting Alex DeBrincat, taken in the the second round in 2016. was terrific in Chicago before being traded to Ottawa. 

Some other draftees started in Chicago before moving elsewhere to have functional NHL careers. On this list are Kevin Hayes (2010), Phillip Danault (2011), Teuvo Teravainen (2012), Ryan Hartman (2013), Nick Schmaltz (2014) and Adam Boqvist (2018). They jury is still out on Kirby Dach (2019).

But there also are the high picks who washed out. Among this group are defensemen Bowman proclaimed as "mobile and talented," such as Nicolas Beaudin (2018), Ian Mitchell (2017), Chad Krys (2016) and Carl Dahlstrom (2013).