Have Edmonton Oilers given up on giving second chances?

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This in from NHL insider Frank Seravalli, news that the Edmonton Oilers are not interested in signing Carter Hart. “I was told that Carter Hart is a non-starter for the Edmonton Oilers,” he said, noting that Hart and the other four players acquitted in the Hockey Canada Five sex assault trial have all been deemed ineligible to play in the NHL for the time being. “They’re going to continue to review the file before determining next steps in the (NHL) commissioner’s office.”

There have been several insider reports in the past month saying the same, suggesting the Oilers aren’t interested in signing goalie Carter Hart, or any of the five players.

On Oilers Now, the ultimate Oilers insider Bob Stauffer has repeatedly asked fans their opinion on signing one of the players. Stauffer has also asked guests about the issue as well since last week when Ontario King’s Court bench Justice Maria Sarroccia not only found that players were not guilty, but ruled that actual consent was given for the sex acts by the complainant, E.M.

This Monday, Stauffer interviewed former NHL agent and GM Brian Lawton about where the five players might well end up. Lawton noted the higher level of interest in the criminal case in Canada.

“Canada, to me, I could very easily see be a divided country over this… It’s almost like a political ordeal, where half the people are certain it was the most horrific thing ever and half are certain that these players were acquitted and they should be forgiven and move on with their lives.”

In Edmonton, GM Stan Bowman was ineligible to work in the NHL for almost three years due to what the NHL saw as an “inadequate response” to a reported sex assault by Chicago’s video coach on player Kyle Beach in 2010. But the NHL and the Oilers gave Bowman a second chance, with Bowman hired by Edmonton as GM last summer. Stauffer asked Lawton if that history would impact Bowman’s decision on attempting to bring in any of the five players.

“I don’t think that should be a factor. Stan and (former Chicago coach) Joel Quenville, to be fair, they’re two gentlemen … that I’ve known for a very long time. And knowing both of them, although I think it helped them to be accepted back, both of them went through a hell of a lot of pain individually to get back to where they are. It was not easy. They both deserve to be back where they are.

“Knowing both these guys as well as I do, there is absolutely no reason that they should have any insecurities about that. They’re both quality people that went through a very difficult time that was on full display publicly, that hurt both of them immensely. And I think unjustly in the end.

“So I don’t think it should. I think in the Oilers’ case, it’s more… If I was an agent, I would strongly recommend that the players do not sign in Canada. And I think that might offend a lot of people, but I think the subject will be very dividing for the country, and it will continue for a long time. And ultimately, it will put players in a more challenging and difficult situation that’s already going to be incredibly challenging and difficult.”

My take

1. It may well be the right decision for the five players to look for NHL employment in an American city, where hockey is the fifth or sixth most popular sport, not the obsession of the city, as it is in Canadian markets. That could well make sense for these five players.

That said, the Oilers have done well giving numerous players second chances, even those convicted of a serious crime. I found it troubling the rumours started that Oilers management wasn’t interested in any of the five players even before there was a verdict.

Is Edmonton no longer an organization interested in second chances?

2. The verdict turned out to be full of details that exonerated the players. Judge Maria Carroccia made it clear that testimony from the complainant E.M. was unreliable and not credible, that her narrative was demonstrably false on numerous key points and that she had, in fact, consented to the sex acts.

Carroccia’s ruling was the best case scenario for the players, as it not only found them not guilty, but Carroccia backed up her verdict with a thorough and transparent accounting of proven facts in the case, as opposed to the speculation and one-side accounting that has dominated public discussion for a few years.

Carroccia gave the public its first even-handed look at what went on between the complainant and the five accused on the night in question from June 2018. If you care to dig into the case, here are ten key findings made by Carroccia.

The verdict doesn’t mean the players in question behaved well that in June 2018. They did not act in gentlemanly fashion. That said, they were innocent until proven guilty, they were found not guilty, and the lengthy and detailed verdict exonerated them. They’ve now faced an ongoing and relentless public thrashing, as well as being found ineligible to play in the NHL last season. The punishment they’ve already received from the NHL and in the court of public opinion is sufficient, no?

3. Former Oilers hockey bosses such as Glen Sather, Peter Chiarelli and Ken Holland gave second chances to numerous players, most notable Craig MacTavish, who had been convicted of vehicular homicide in 1984 while a member of the Boston Bruins. MacTavish went on to win three Stanley Cups as an Oiler, one as a Ranger, before becoming the coach and GM of the Oilers. He’s much admired in the Edmonton for his time with the Oilers and as sharp hockey mind.

In recent years players with severely tarnished reputations such as Zack Kassian, Evander Kane and Corey Perry have all come here under dark clouds and proceeded to both win fans with their play and also earn praise as solid citizens for getting their acts together in Edmonton.

As mentioned, the Edmonton Oilers also gave Stan Bowman a second chance.

Of course, some folks find this forgiving trait of the Oilers organization to be repellant. I’ll suggest it’s admirable.

No doubt there are some few of us who have yet to screw up in some minor or some significant way. But that’s not me and it’s not most of you. Most of us have erred in life, in our social or our work lives or both. We’ve all benefited from others giving us another chance to prove ourselves.

In getting a fresh start, any one of us has to stop making excuses, take responsibility, do what can be done to make amends, and change our behaviour. But we’ve seen that can be done. We’ve seen it repeatedly with troubled young men on the Oilers who have become honoured figures in the Edmonton community.

I’m open to seeing that happen again. You?