Former Blackhawks coach and general manager attend meeting of NHL coaches and GMs near Chicago on Friday. But the NHL commissioner has no timetable as to when they will be allowed back following their roles in Brad Aldrich scandal.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman says he doesn't know if or when he might reinstate Joel Quenneville and Stan Bowman, the Blackhawks coach and general manager when Chicago prospect Kyle Beach was sexually assaulted in 2010.

Quenneville and Bowman "voluntarily" attended a meeting of the league's coaches and GMs at a hotel near Chicago's O'Hare International Airport on Friday. 

"It wasn't something that they were told they needed to do," Bettman told reporters after the meeting. "We said if you'd like the opportunity to address the group, you would have it."

Quenneville, the second-winningest coach in NHL history, and Bowman were working for the Blackhawks when Beach, then 20, was coerced by then-video coach Brad Aldrich into a non-consensual encounter. An independent report commissioned by the Blackhawks in 2021 showed Quenneville and Bowman were among the team's managers who were slow to react — a de facto cover-up — after Beach reported the incident during Chicago's postseason run to the Stanley Cup.

The report, by Chicago law firm Jenner & Block, was published in October 2021. Bowman resigned from the Blackhawks immediately after its release. Quenneville stepped down as coach of the Florida Panthers two days later after meeting with Bettman.

While neither Bowman or Quennevile was technically suspended, Bettman must approve their return to the NHL.

“I still have to make a judgment as to when or whether it’s appropriate for them to be reinstated,” Bettman said. “It’s something I’m going to have to focus on more, and at some point, make a decision on."

In an informal THN poll last summer, fans seem to be more forgiving of Quenneville than Bowman. See our story:https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/chicago-blackhawks/analysis/bettman-should-talk-to-quenneville-but-not-bowman

Bettman said neither were mandated to be at Friday's meeting at a hotel, but said, "It gave them to tell everybody about their experience and lessons learned."

Bettman declined to disclose exactly what Bowman and Quenneville told the group of 64 coaches and GMs.

Bowman and Quenneville reportedly applied for reinstatement and met with Bettman in July. The commissioner has the sole authority to review their cases and permit them to return.

“Because I have to go through that process at some point, I don’t want to be discussing it publicly until I’m ready to tell everybody what I’m thinking,” Bettman said.

Per the Jenner & Block report, John McDonough, the Blackhawks president and CEO at the time, played the lead role in trying to dust Aldrich's assault of Beach under the rug. McDonough, however, had been released by the Blackhawks in April 2020 after roiling then-team owner, the late Rocky Wirtz.

Bettman said the meeting of all the leagues GM's and coaches was successful. The GMs meet routinely during the season, but coaches can't attend because they must remain with their teams.

"Based on the opportunity we had had at dinner last night and the opportunity for people to get together, I think everybody in the room thought it was terrific to do it," Betttman said. "Having the group of 64 in the room was really good."