No charges filed in Patrick Kane investigation, no expansion vote scheduled for upcoming NHL meetings and more in your morning coffee headlines.
Notable NHL Headlines.
Investigation find insufficient evidence to charge Blackhawks winger Patrick Kane with rape.
CHICAGO TRIBUNE: Erie County District Attorney Frank Sedita III announced yesterday his office is closing its three-month investigation into rape allegations leveled against Chicago Blackhawks forward Patrick Kane and won’t be pressing charges against him. Sedita noted the claim against Kane was “rife with reasonable doubt,” adding Kane never acted like a guilty man.
Sedita said there were “significant material inconsistencies” between his accuser’s claims and those of other witnesses, no proof Kane’s accuser had been penetrated, while the physical and forensic evidence contradicted her claim he raped her in his bed. Kane subsequently released a brief statement reasserting his innocence, thanking investigators and adding he has nothing further to say about this incident.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: You can read Sedita’s full statement here. While the DA won’t be pressing charges, it’s possible Kane’s accuser could bring a civil suit against him.
NBC SPORTS: Jason Brough reports NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly announced via an e-mail to the Las Vegas Review-Journal the league won’t be voting on expansion during next month’s Board of Governors meeting. Brough suggests the league could be waiting for the city of Seattle to sort out its arena construction issue, for the Arizona Coyotes to sort out its local arena situation, and to perhaps determine if the Florida Panthers can work out a tax relief deal with Broward County.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: Expansion is coming before the end of this decade, and Las Vegas will almost certainly be a destination for a new team. Whether that team is an expansion franchise or a current one being relocated from Arizona or Florida remains to be seen.
I believe the league wants to put a team in Seattle and was hoping that city would submit a bid earlier this year. I also think they want to bring an NHL franchise back to Quebec, but they’ve got to sort out the logistics. In other words, they want two new franchises in the Western Conference, but they’ve got to also sort out how to bring one to Quebec City without perpetuating the current imbalance between the two conferences.
EDMONTON SUN: The Edmonton Oilers will move Ryan Nugent-Hopkins from the first-line center position into Connor McDavid’s spot on the second line, while sliding Leon Draisaitl into the first-line center spot. McDavid is currently out two-four months with a broken collarbone.
OTTAWA SUN: Senators GM Bryan Murray claimed NHL Senior VP of Player Safety Stephane Quintal ignored his request for a lesser punishment for winger Mark Stone, who received a two-game suspension for elbowing Detroit’s Landon Ferraro in the head. Murray believes the elbow was “very accidental”, but his plea fell on deaf ears.
TWINCITIES.COM: Minnesota Wild captain Mikko Koivu celebrates his 10 seasons with the franchise.
VICE SPORTS: Dave Lozo explains why he stopped caring about his favorite team, the New Jersey Devils.
THE HOCKEY NEWS: Ken Campbell believes the Winnipeg Jets are bucking analytics and winning.
SPECTOR’S NOTE: The analytics suggest otherwise.
Injury Report.
TWINCITIES.COM: Minnesota Wild winger Zach Parise (lower-body injury) is expected to miss Saturday’s game against the Tampa Bay Lightning. Further word on his status is expected today.
NEW YORK POST: Rangers right wing Rick Nash (back) is questionable for tonight’s game against the Colorado Avalanche.
TORONTO SUN: The Maple Leafs have placed goaltender Jonathan Bernier (lower-body injury) on injured reserved dating back to Oct. 31. He will miss tonight’s game against the Detroit Red Wings and Saturday’s match-up against the Washington Capitals.
DETROIT FREE PRESS: Red Wings defenseman Kyle Quincey will see a doctor next week to determine if he needs surgery on his right ankle. If he does, he could miss up to six weeks.
Back when it was a “hot topic” I said consistently that those who were ready to convict and hang Kane should at least wait until the investigation ran its course. That “rush to judgement” is all too typical of the “politically-correct” generation who felt that, simply because she said it happened it therefore follows that it did!
As for the feeling that “While the DA won’t be pressing charges, it’s possible Kane’s accuser could bring a civil suit against him” – that won’t happen either since that would also involve a hearing of some sort where lawyers would have a field day with a story so full of holes it resembles Swiss cheese.
There is nothing wrong with rushing to conclusions. Heck the guy still may have done it. We have her word vs his. The evidence isn’t enough to put forth charges. Kane’s Character is in question from the start and now that it is revealed that this women’s complaint is full of contradictions we can conclude her character to be in question.
So this is your choice. Assume Kane is innocent and the women is a liar in which she should be convicted for defamation of character and/or extortion if a financial gain was her goal. Or Kane is guilty and the women was raped in which he should be convicted. Either way you choose you are ‘rushing to judgement’
In the end it seems their is not enough proof for either situation to be brought to court. So do we simply pretend it never happened or do I rush to judgement.
Wonder what your “opinion” might be if someone ever pointed a finger at you for something and you know it to be untrue. Teachers have had their careers ruined by such actions and in one famous case a guy went to prison on a “rape” charge that later turned out to be false based upon DNA when that came into effect. If she had had a solid case charges would have been laid and a court case convened. She didn’t and it did not. End of bloody story.
George compare the falsely accused with the numbers of women who are beatenand raped and dont say anything for fear of massogynistic comments and auusations that comeoutof donkeys mouths similar to the ones you just wrote. Heres an idea if Pat Kane is so concerned with looking innocent and behaving he should try cutting back on the booze a wee bit, maybe next time he wont end up punching out an elderly cab driver or having women mastakingly accusing him of rape…just because charges were dropped doesnt make Kane innocent or some martyr of the falsely accused
Nor does it make him guilty IS ALL I AM SAYING. It’s one hell of a stretch to go from being a hothead teen bully pounding on a cabbie to a frikken rapist. It’s also NOT beyond the realm of possibility that the woman was lying through her teeth.
I wonder what your opinion would be if it was your daughter or grand daughter.
You’re assuming – as usual – that my daughter or granddaughter would be incapable of lying through her teeth or, if she was, somehow that would force me into taking her side IF I knew she was lying! Bottom line – you can’t “assume anything – that’s why we have a judicial system. Otherwise we revert to mob mentality and lynching.
“Senators GM Bryan Murray claimed NHL Senior VP of Player Safety Stephane Quintal ignored his request for a lesser punishment for winger Mark Stone, who received a two-game suspension for elbowing Detroit’s Landon Ferraro in the head. Murray believes the elbow was “very accidental”, but his plea fell on deaf ears.”
That’s because Stone and the Sens were an easy target to allow Quintal to flex his muscles. Not so much with stars like Byfuglien, Zetterberg and Stamkos. Another Bettman sock-puppet just like Shanahan.
I understand Byfuglien but what did Zetterberg do and to whom. I know alot of Wings fans thought Stamkos took a shot at Larkin but some of it is hockey. Where and when did Zetterberg go after a player this year?I could see Lucic against San Jose as a beter example this year.
Read about it here
http://www.tsn.ca/nhl-says-video-of-zetterberg-hit-was-inconclusive-1.387548
I believe it came down to how Stone describe the situation. Stone admitted he tried to check the guy to prevent the odd man rush. It was concluded that it was Stone’s intent to commit the hit and he made head contact and that the onus was on him not to commit and illegal check.
It seems if you claim innocence and it was an unintended accident you can get off.