Chicago Blackhawks owner Rocky Wirtz thoroughly embarrassed himself and the entire franchise when he melted down at a town hall for fans on Wednesday over questions about the Kyle Beach scandal that recently plagued the organization. Wirtz apologized for his actions afterward, but the damage was already done.
Beach filed a lawsuit in 2021 alleging sexual assault by the Blackhawks' former video coach, Brad Aldrich, in 2010. A thorough investigation showed key Blackhawks leaders didn't take action so as not to disrupt the team's Stanley Cup run, and the result was a number of people losing their jobs, including general manager Stan Bowman. Beach ultimately settled with the team.
When asked about the situation at Wednesday's town hall, the Blackhawks owner snapped and said the team isn't looking in the past, via ESPN's Kristen Shilton:
“I think the report speaks for itself,” Wirtz said. “The people that were involved are no longer here. We're not looking back at 2010; we're looking forward. And we're not going to talk about 2010.”
Then came the double down from the Blackhawks owner:
“What we're going to do today is our business. I don't think it's any of your business,” Wirtz said. “Because I don't think it's your business. You don't work for the company. If someone in the company asked that question, we'll answer it, and I think you should get on to the next subject. We're not going to talk about Kyle Beach. We're not going to talk about anything that happened.
And the triple down:
“I answered [that question],” Wirtz said. “I told you to get off the subject. We're not going to talk about the report [on Beach]. We read it. We're moving on. I think you're out of line. I don't like your questions. Why don't you ask about something else? Why don't you ask about the GM search? Or something else? Why do you bring up old business?”
As expected, Wirtz was pilloried by Blackhawks media and the national media as well with the team playing on TNT. The owner predictably put out an apology statement in an attempt to do damage control:
Rocky Wirtz apologizes in a statement for having "crossed the line." pic.twitter.com/83ZdwOmcBj
— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) February 3, 2022
The Blackhawks got smacked by the Minnesota Wild, 5-0, capping off a truly embarrassing day for the franchise, which has become a theme of late. It wasn't long ago that Wirtz and the Blackhawks were viewed as one of the best organizations in the NHL, but they have squandered most of that goodwill, with this latest episode another black eye on the franchise.
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