NHL won't discipline Jets GM Cheveldayoff over Chicago team's handling of sex assault allegations

The NHL says it will not discipline Winnipeg Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff in connection with the Chicago team's mishandling of sexual assault allegations against a former video coach.  

The news follows Cheveldayoff's meeting with NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Friday. The league said he was found as "not responsible for the improper decisions" made by the team related to Brad Aldrich, who allegedly sexually assaulted player Kyle Beach during the team's Stanley Cup run in 2010.

"While on some level, it would be easiest to paint everyone with any association to this terrible matter with the same broad brush, I believe that fundamental fairness requires a more in-depth analysis of the role of each person," said Bettman in a media release.

"Kevin Cheveldayoff was not a member of [Chicago's] senior leadership team in 2010, and I cannot, therefore, assign to him responsibility for the club's actions, or inactions. He provided a full account of his degree of involvement in the matter, which was limited exclusively to his attendance at a single meeting, and I found him to be extremely forthcoming and credible in our discussion."

WATCH | Chicago reporter discusses NHL's decision not to discipline Jets GM: 

Jets GM Cheveldayoff won't be disciplined over mishandling of 2010 sex assault allegations

3 years ago

Duration 10:09

NHL beat reporter Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times discusses the fallout from the Chicago NHL team's mishandling of sexual assault allegations against a former video coach, including news that then Chicago assistant general manager and current Winnipeg Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff won't face discipline from the league.

The NHL's announcement comes a day after Florida Panthers head coach Joel Quenneville, who was the head coach of Chicago at the time of the alleged incident, resigned after a meeting with Bettman.

Chicago general manager and president of hockey operations Stan Bowman and top executive Al MacIsaac have also resigned following the release of a report from law firm Jenner & Block. 

Commissioned by the Chicago team in response to two lawsuits, the report found that the team failed to act for three weeks after leadership discussed the allegations at a meeting on May 23, 2010. 

Cheveldayoff was Chicago's assistant GM at the time. In its release, the NHL says his participation at the meeting was "extremely limited in scope and substance," and noted that most people didn't initially recall his presence.

The league says Cheveldayoff, who has been the GM of the Jets since the team relocated to Winnipeg from Atlanta in 2011, was the lowest-ranked official in the room and "essentially an observer to the discussion of possible next steps." 

The discussion, the league says, "apparently ended with Cheveldayoff believing that the matter was going to be investigated." 

WATCH | Sheldon Kennedy calls on league to make systemic changes:

Sheldon Kennedy calls on NHL leadership to make systemic changes

3 years ago

Duration 13:06

Sheldon Kennedy, the former NHL player, sexual abuse survivor and advocate for those who have been sexually abused, joined CBC Morning Live host Heather Hiscox to discuss changes that need to be made in the wake of the 2010 sexual abuse allegations involving Chicago's NHL team.

In a statement shared by the Jets, Cheveldayoff said he wanted to express support and empathy for Beach and all he has endured since 2010. 

"He was incredibly brave coming forward to tell his story. We can all use his courage as an inspiration to do a better job of making hockey a safer space for anyone who wants to play the game."