Photo Credit: Brandon Taylor/OHL Images)On Wednesday, Mar. 12, TSN's Senior Correspondent Rick Westhead reported that the Ontario Hockey League has hired a Toronto law firm — Turnpennery Milne LLP — to conduct a cultural review of the Niagara IceDogs.
The IceDogs are under investigation following multiple complaints of inappropriate behaviour involving team staff.
“In addition, we have appointed Brodie Barrick, the league’s director of player recruitment and player support services to be on site to work with and support team ownership, leadership and players on matters related to our players first program," the OHL wrote in a statement to TSN on Tuesday.
Unfortunately for the IceDogs, they have been at the center of controversy off the ice in the OHL for the last six years.
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In 2019, the organization was originally fined $250,000 and the loss of their first-round draft pick in 2019 for violating the player-recruitment rules. They were able to settle with the league and got the fine reduced to $150,000.
In 2022, former IceDogs' GM Joey Burke and his brother Billy Burke, who was the head coach at the time, were suspended indefinitely by the OHL following an investigation where they used offensive language and profanities directed at a specific person in a private WhatsApp group chat.
The league fined the Burke's and the IceDogs a combined $150,000 in addition to their suspension.
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Then, in May of 2023, the OHL suspended GM Darren DeDobbelaer, who had just taken over for Joey as the IceDogs' GM, for two years, and fined Niagara $100,000, following an incident involving IceDogs players Landon Cato and Joshua Rosenzweig, who were both banned by the league.
The OHL had received allegations that "certain IceDog players" had violated the OHL's maltreatment, bullying and harassment prevention policy and its code of conduct.
Cato, who was the team captain at the time, and goaltender Rosenzweig participated in "serious" violations of both policies, "including but not limited to physical maltreatment and aiding and abetting."
As if things couldn't get worse for the IceDogs. The team is currently one of the coldest teams in the OHL and struggling to scrape out wins on a nightly basis.
Niagara needs to get their play straightened out. Missing starting goaltender Owen Flores has really hurt them, but the playoffs are just around the corner, and if they enter the playoffs with the way they are currently playing, then it could be a quick first-round exit.
