The Chicago Blackhawks announced that they would be waiving forward Corey Perry for purposes of contract termination on Tuesday. The Blackhawks allege that they found in an internal investigation evidence of “unacceptable conduct” from Perry that is “in violation of both the terms of his Standard Player’s Contract and the Blackhawks’ internal policies intended to promote professional and safe work environments.”
After the news was announced, general manager Kyle Davidson held a press conference for assembled media. Davidson gave a prepared statement and then took questions from reporters.
He did not reveal much.
Here’s a general timeline of events of the Perry situation.
- Tuesday, November 21: Perry practices normally with Blackhawks.
- Wednesday, November 22: Perry is healthy scratched from lineup for game against Columbus Blue Jackets.
- Thursday, November 23: Head coach Luke Richardson calls the scratch an “organizational decision.”
- Saturday, November 25: Davidson reveals Perry would be absent for “the foreseeable future.”
- Tuesday, November 28: Blackhawks place Perry on waivers for purpose of contract termination.
Transcript
Note: The transcript below contains paraphrases of the questions asked.
Kyle Davidson: “Thank you everyone for being here today. First and foremost, I want to start off by reiterating the organization is committed to a culture of accountability and upholding our values across our employees and players both on and off the ice. Last week, management was notified of possible misconduct by Corey Perry. We immediately pulled him from the game and conducted an internal investigation. Upon learning the findings of the investigation, we made the decision to terminate his contract. As this is an individual personal matter, I will not be able to disclose any details related to the initial reporting, investigation, or the findings. However, I do want to be very clear on this one point: This does not involve any players or their families, and anything that suggests otherwise, or anyone that suggests otherwise, is wildly inaccurate, and frankly, it’s disgusting. This has been a tough situation and I understand you wanted answers. It was important that we took all the necessary steps before sharing more. I hope you can understand that I may not be able to answer everything today, but I am going to be as open and honest as I can be given the situation and out of respect for those involved.”
Is there any criminality involved here or anything potentially criminal?
Kyle Davidson: “This was a workplace matter.”
Have you been involved with the NHLPA or the league with this and is this a potential situation where the player assistance program would come into play?
Kyle Davidson: “All those entities are aware of what’s occurring here but this was a team incident so it was a team decision.”
Given that it’s a workplace incident and given the Blackhawks’ history and saying that there’s going to be transparency within the organization, why can’t you say more about what transpired?
Kyle Davidson: “I just can’t get into specifics because it is an individual personnel matter.”
Is this something that happened in Columbus?
Kyle Davidson: “The most I can disclose is that we learned about it while we were in Columbus.”
Does it involve a staff member of the Blackhawks’ organization?
Kyle Davidson: “Again, I’m not going to get into further details.”
Is the league involved? Did you notify the league as soon as you heard about it?
Kyle Davidson: “The league was understanding of the situation as was the NHLPA. All parties are informed but again, team incident so it’s a team decision.”
How did this come to the attention of the team? Was it something that happened in a team environment or was it outside?
Kyle Davidson: “Just given that it’s an individual personnel matter, I’m not going to get into specifics.”
When did you guys notify the team, your players, that you were going to release Corey?
Kyle Davidson: “I met with the team today to update them on our decision. So, it was today.”
What was their reaction?
Kyle Davidson: “They just kind of listened.”
What is your reaction to having this happen?
Kyle Davidson: “It’s obviously been very tough. It’s been a tough couple of days.”
You guys have worked hard to set a new culture here. Does that make it more tough to swallow?
Kyle Davidson: “I think more than anything it reinforces the resolve we have to change the culture and make sure we’re doing the right things and upholding our values and making sure that we continue to build a culture of accountability. That’s my thoughts on that.”
Were the new reporting processes you’ve implemented in the past few years able to make a difference in this regard?
Kyle Davidson: “I believe so, yes.”
Corey was brought in to set an example for the young guys. How much more disappointing does that make it when something like this happens?
Kyle Davidson: “Obviously it’s tough. It adds another layer.”
Did it show you another side of his character that you weren’t expecting to see or didn’t jive with your background intel on him?
Kyle Davidson: “It certainly didn’t mesh with the background that we received.”
Just wanting to confirm, law enforcement was not involved in this?
Kyle Davidson: “This was a workplace matter.”
Does the fact that someone was confident enough to report it give you confidence in the way things are being operated now?
Kyle Davidson: “I think I’d rather just reserve comment on that.”
Do you need to address the team at a later point to explain what happened given that he was brought in to be a locker room leader?
Kyle Davidson: “I’m very confident in the locker room and their resilience. Obviously, it’s a tough day but we’ll continue to communicate with our players and we’ll go forward from there.”
Do the players know exactly what happened?
Kyle Davidson: “The players do not have any details at all.”
Do you feel like the absence of a detailed explanation has led to a lot of speculation about what it could be?
Kyle Davidson: “To be honest, I think over the last 24 hours what’s gone on has been very disturbing and I feel like I’m wearing it. I’m carrying that. It’s just tough to see. It’s tough to see.”
Do you wish you would have clarified sooner given what’s ended up happening?
Kyle Davidson: “You know what, I think we went through the process as quickly as we could in order to run a responsible investigation.”
What kind of backing or counsel did you get from Danny Wirtz or Jaime Faulkner, if any?
Kyle Davidson: “I think I’d just rather leave that internal.”
Will this investigation lead to any internal changes in procedure or any other additional safeguards for your employees?
Kyle Davidson: “I think it’s so fresh that we’ll get through today and I’m sure we’ll continue to always evaluate. The one thing that goes without saying after something comes out is that you’re always trying to get better. You’re always trying to improve. I don’t see why this wouldn’t be the case moving forward. We’re always looking to be better than we were the day before.”
Were you able to conduct your investigation using exclusively internal resources or did you use an outside entity?
Kyle Davidson: “It’s an internal matter.”
Have you had conversations with Corey to get his side and can you say what his response was either to the findings of the investigation or to your decision?
Kyle Davidson: “I’m not going to get into the details of our conversations.”
Being that Perry was an assistant captain, are there going to be any other changes of anyone taking on his assistant captaincy?
Kyle Davidson: “Unclear at this time.”
Video
Here’s #Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson’s full press conference following Corey Perry’s contract termination and dismissal from the team pic.twitter.com/8FCQ48sKSE
— CHGO Blackhawks (@CHGO_Blackhawks) November 28, 2023
Screenshot via NBC Sports Chicago
