NHL coach implicated in sexual assault scandal makes shock return to league

Despite being implicated as a major player in the cover up of the sexual assault of one of his former players, Joel Quenneville will be returning to the National Hockey League as a coach.

Quenneville, who has been out of work since 2021, has been announced as the head coach of the Anaheim Ducks. The Ducks recently fired head coach Greg Cronin after he spent two seasons behind the bench. 

Per ESPN’s Emily Kaplan, the Ducks were interesting in hiring University of Denver head coach David Carle before he extended his contract with the school. Former NHL coaches Rich Tocchet and Jay Woodcroft were also considered.

Quenneville is most well-known for being the head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks, where he won three Stanley Cups in 2010, 2013, and 2015. 

But it was during that first title run in 2010 where Quenneville knowingly covered up the sexual assault of a player, Kyle Beach, at the hands of video analyst Brad Aldrich.

An investigation conducted by the NHL found that Quenneville and other members of the Blackhawks front office were made aware of the allegations prior to the Stanley Cup Final. In particular, Quenneville was concerned that addressing the sexual assault would be a ‘distraction’ to the team.

The Anaheim Ducks are set to hire Joel Quenneville as their next head coach

Quenneville is known for being a three-time Stanley Cup winning head coach

He’s also known for being a major player in the cover up of the sexual assault of Kyle Beach 

On May 7, 2021, a former Blackhawks player – initially filing as John Doe, later revealed as Beach – accused Aldrich of sexually assaulting him during the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Beach also alleged that Aldrich physically, emotionally, and financially threatened him.

A month’s long investigation by the law firm Jenner & Block found that executives – including Quenneville, general manager Stan Bowman, and VP of Hockey Operations Al MacIsaac – held a meeting after sweeping the San Jose Sharks in the Western Conference Finals to address the claims.

However, the executives decided to not address the claims until after the Stanley Cup Finals. The report found that the matter was never discussed again.

Aldrich was given the option of resigning or being fired by the Blackhawks’ human resources director if the claims were true. Aldrich chose to resign and was still allowed to participate in celebrations after the Blackhawks won the 2010 Stanley Cup Final.

Aldrich went on to work for the University of Notre Dame and Miami University in Ohio before serving as a high school assistant coach in Houghton, Michigan.

He was accused of sexual assault at Miami University and was later convicted of having sexual contact with a minor at the high school job. Aldrich served nine months in prison and was required to register as a sex offender in the state of Michigan.

In October of 2021, Kyle Beach gave an interview on SportsCentre in Canada and confirmed that he was John Doe – detailing his experiences with the Blackhawks.

After the investigation was completed, Bowman and MacIsaac resigned from their positions within the team on October 26, 2021. Quenneville, who was the head coach of the Florida Panthers at the time, also resigned from his post two days later.

In 2021, Beach revealed that he had been sexually assaulted by video analyst Brad Aldrich in the 2010 season. He filed a suit under the name ‘John Doe’ and the NHL investigated.

The investigation found that Quenneville advocated for not addressing Beach’s claims – believing that doing so would be a ‘distraction’ to the team’s run at the Stanley Cup

Aldrich went on to allegedly assault a college student and was convicted of assaulting a minor while working as an assistant coach at a high school in Houghton, Michigan 

Quenneville, Blackhawks GM Stan Bowman (L) and Blackhawks VP of Hockey Operations Al MacIsaac (R) were all suspended by the NHL for their roles. They were reinstated in July 2024. Bowman has since been hired as the general manager for the Edmonton Oilers.

The Blackhawks were fined $2million by the NHL after the completion of the investigation. 

Beach and the Blackhawks reached a confidential settlement in December of 2021.

In November of 2023, another anonymous former Blackhawks prospect filed a negligence lawsuit against the Blackhawks for suppressing his complaints of sexual harassment and threats of physical violence from Aldrich during the 2010 playoffs.

Last July, the NHL reinstated Quenneville, Bowman, and MacIsaac – allowing all three of them to be employed by a team if they chose to do so.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman noted that the three men showed ‘sincere remorse’ for their ‘unacceptable’ response to the allegations. 

Weeks after that decision, Bowman was hired to be the general manager of the Edmonton Oilers.

According to ESPN, the Ducks did ‘an extensive look into Quenneville’s role’ in the scandal over the course of ‘several weeks’ – including speaking to Beach ‘other advocacy groups that Quenneville had formed relationships with.’

Ultimately, the team believed the coach ‘had continued to put in the necessary work to understand how to reform the mistakes from 2010,’ sources told the outlet.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said last July that the three men showed ‘sincere remorse’

Quenneville will now answer to Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek, a former teammate

Quenneville is the second-winningest coach in NHL history – owning 969 wins across time with the St. Louis Blues and two stints with the Colorado Avalanche in addition to his time behind the bench with the Blackhawks and Panthers.

Prior to his coaching days, Quenneville played 13 NHL seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Colorado Rockies (hockey team), the New Jersey Devils, the Hartford Whalers, and the Washington Capitals.

Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek was a teammate of Quenneville’s in Hartford for one season.

After the announcement of Quenneville was made official, Verbeek released a statement: ‘Over the last two weeks, we conducted interviews with many outstanding coaching candidates, while simultaneously conducting a comprehensive review of what took place while Joel was head coach of the Blackhawks in 2010.

‘We spoke with dozens of individuals, including advocates for positive change in hockey and leadership of the NHL, which last July officially cleared Joel to seek employment in the league. 

‘Our findings are consistent with Joel’s account that he was not fully aware of the severity of what transpired in 2010. 

‘It is clear that Joel deeply regrets not following up with more questions at the time, has demonstrated meaningful personal growth and accountability, and has earned the opportunity to return to coaching.’