There were those who wanted transparency–and rightly so–received it from Chicago Blackhawks General Manager Kyle Davidson. His words were not only transparent, but very much to the point.
With Corey Perry placed on unconditional waivers with the intent of being bought out, the Blackhawks and Davidson made their most direct report of things so far.
Davidson confirmed that he was put on waivers but added further that the what he could say would be limited due to it being an internal matter. But he was also very straight forward about one potential point that had been roiling social media for the past few days.
“However I do want to be very clear on this one point,” Davidson said. “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,” Davidson continued. “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.”
Perry Has Been Out Since Last Wednesday
Perry was a healthy scratch prior to the game Wednesday against Columbus and speculation continued throughout the week. Through the weekend, Perry’s agent released a tweet about an hour after Davidson addressed the media, explaining that the decision for Perry to be away from the organization was the Blackhawks choice. Perry’s agent responded:
It only ramped up the speculation. The past 48 hours ushered in the nastiness of the social media with lewd comments attributed to the situation. It was what Davidson referred to, and was steadfast in denouncing. He did go further, indicating that it had been a hard day for so many in the organization.
Davidson could not elaborate on specific terms as it was a “workplace matter.” He indicated it was also a “team incident” and a “team decision” in the course they chose.
“I just can’t get into specifics because it is an individual personnel matter,” Davidson said. “The most I can disclose is we learned about it while we were in Columbus.”
Davidson’s Words As Transparent as He Can Legally Be
Those able to watch the press conference could see how shaken Davidson was by all of it. There’s obviously the history with the organization that shook it to the core regarding with the incident involving Kyle Beach, and the noise surrounding the last week only grew louder until Davidson addressed it today.
Speaking to the team, Davidson said they were quiet and didn’t really respond.
“I met with the team today to update them on our decision. When pressed on their reaction, Davidson simply said, “They just kind of listened.”
But it was when asked about the incident that he was probably the most transparent–moreso than some expected saying how it was “disturbing” and how he was “wearing it.”
“It’s obviously been very tough,” Davidson said, choking up. “It’s been a tough couple days.”
For a situation that has been thorny and shrouded for some time, Kyle Davidson did what he could to eliminate the rumors while also being as honest as he could be, without violating any privacy that would be assigned to it.
Likely there’s more that will eventually be released in time, but for now, the Blackhawks are trying to follow the credo they insisted upon after the fallout from three years ago.
“I think more than anything it reinforces the resolve we have to change the culture and make sure we’re doing the right things, upholding our values, and making sure that we continue to build a culture of accountability,” Davidson said.
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