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Hockey Canada chair looks back on response to scandals

Published

1 year ago

May 26, 2023

Hugh Fraser thought he had a decent handle on his new role.

For the most part, that was true.

Weeks into chairing Hockey Canada’s newly minted board of directors — and with plenty already on his plate as he looked to help resurrect the scandal-plagued national sport organization following months of cringe-inducing, in-the-muck headlines — Fraser was in Halifax for January’s world junior hockey championship final.

The host country secured a dramatic overtime victory to capture gold. Medals were about to be handed out.

The retired judge had no idea that was part of the gig.

“Something nobody told me came with the job,” Fraser recalled with a laugh of doling out post-tournament hardware.

“I found out like 10 minutes before. That aspect never occurred to me.”

He could be forgiven. There was a lot on his mind.

To help Hockey Canada out of a dismal period that began 12 months ago Friday, when it was revealed a woman alleged she had been sexually assaulted by members of the 2018 world junior team in London, Ont., four years earlier, Fraser this week reflected on the first five months of a leadership term nearing its midway point.

After the federal government paused funding, corporate sponsors jumped ship, secret accounts and more scandals emerged, and Hockey Canada’s previous bosses were grilled by a parliamentary committee, he’s confident the federation is on the right track with a board of directors focused on oversight, transparency and accountability.

“The challenge is getting that message across — that there’s a different approach,” the 70-year-old said in an interview with The Canadian Press. “It’s been a seven-day a week job for the board.

“The will was always there … but the biggest challenge is squeezing an awful lot in a relatively short period.”

That included demonstrating to the government there’s been progress — funding was restored last month — and showing corporate and provincial partners the governance changes outlined in a report by former Supreme Court judge Thomas Cromwell are being taken seriously.

Fraser, who also handed out medals at the recent women’s world championship in Brampton, Ont., said sponsorship dollars are closing in on levels seen at this time last year in a rebound from that mass corporate exodus, but it took a lot of face-to-face meetings.

“We had to, literally, on a one-by-one, partner-by-partner, sponsor-by-sponsor basis, sit down with them,” he said. “This is the plan, this is the goal, these are the priorities.

“This is what we’ve achieved and what we believe we can achieve.”

Fraser said most were receptive to the first meetings, but needed to see action.

“We wanted to know, ‘What things do you think we need to do? What suggestions do you have?”‘ he said. “We did a lot of listening and we saw the alignment.

“We said, ‘Check with us again in a couple of months to see if you see the measurable progress.”‘

There were also difficult decisions at Hockey Canada in a year with those significant funding cuts. Some sponsors wanted to continue support, but only for the women’s and para programs, along with grassroots efforts.

“It meant being leaner in some areas,” said Fraser, who spoke with CP from the men’s world hockey championship in Finland. “In some cases, we had to do more, or maintain, with less.”

The job is far from done. It’s also been a long road just getting to this point.

Hockey Canada’s spring, summer and fall of discontent started when TSN reported on May 26, 2022, that a $3.55-million lawsuit filed by the woman in the London case had been quickly and quietly settled out of court.

Then the floodgates opened.

The ensuing disastrous five-month stretch saw the prime minister repeatedly weigh in, Fraser’s two predecessors as Hockey Canada chair resign, and the board step down the same day CEO Scott Smith left the organization in October.

Fraser was like a lot of Canadians watching the saga unfold.

“Surprised, concerned,” he said. “Wondering what else you’re going to learn.”

A third-party report by a Toronto law firm into the 2018 incident — including interviews with players, coaches and staff — commissioned by Hockey Canada has been handed over to an independent panel to determine the path forward, including potential sanctions. The report has also been shared with police.

No one has been charged and none of the allegations have been proven in court. All members of the 2018 junior team, however, were barred from playing at the men’s worlds this spring. The NHL is also conducting its own investigation.

Meanwhile, Fraser said the search for Smith’s replacement — “we’re getting close” — continues more than seven months after his departure.

“A complex national sport organization that has a lot going on,” Fraser said of Hockey Canada. “We need somebody with a really strong range of skills.

“But above all else, somebody that shares and embraces our vision.”

That doesn’t necessarily mean the person will be picked from the hockey sphere.

“We want the best candidate,” Fraser said. “Whether they come from a hockey background or not.”

That was Fraser, to a certain degree, before he put his name forward to be board chair last fall.

A Jamaican immigrant, he settled in Ottawa and often ran the scoreboard clock at his sons’ minor hockey games when he wasn’t on the judge’s bench. One of the kids, Mark, made the NHL and now works for the Toronto Maple Leafs as the team’s manager for culture and inclusion.

Twelve months after Hockey Canada’s gilded world started to crumble, and five months into a role he never imagined would be part of his journey, Fraser is convinced tangible strides have been made.

And that the future is bright.

“That really does give us the motivation,” he said. “When you take that brief moment to reflect, if we could say that we helped make a positive contribution, it will have been worth it.

“You can sit on the sidelines and complain and criticize … or try to be part of the solution.”

——–

This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 26, 2023.

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Langford, Heim lead Rangers to wild 13-8 win over Blue Jays

Published

5 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Rookie Wyatt Langford homered, doubled twice and became the first Texas player this season to reach base five times, struggling Jonah Heim delivered a two-run single to break a sixth-inning tie and the Rangers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 13-8 on Tuesday night.

Leody Taveras also had a homer among his three hits for the Rangers.

Langford, who also walked twice, has 12 homers and 25 doubles this season. He is hitting .345 in September.

“I think it’s really important to finish on a strong note,” Langford said. “I’m just going to keep trying to do that.”

Heim was 1-for-34 in September before he lined a single to right field off Tommy Nance (0-2) to score Adolis García and Nathaniel Lowe, giving Texas a 9-7 lead. Heim went to the plate hitting .212 with 53 RBIs after being voted an All-Star starter last season with a career-best 95 RBIs. He added a double in the eighth ahead of Taveras’ homer during a three-run inning.

Texas had 13 hits and left 13 men on. It was the Rangers’ highest-scoring game since a 15-8 win at Oakland on May 7.

Matt Festa (5-1) pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings to earn the win, giving him a 5-0 record in 13 appearances with the Rangers after being granted free agency by the New York Mets on July 7.

Nathan Eovaldi, a star of Texas’ 2023 run to the franchise’s first World Series championship, had his worst start of the year in what could have been his final home start with the Rangers. Eovaldi, who will be a free agent next season, allowed 11 hits (the most of his two seasons with Texas) and seven runs (tied for the most).

“I felt like early in the game they just had a few hits that found the holes, a few first-pitch base hits,” said Eovaldi, who is vested for a $20 million player option with Texas for 2025. “I think at the end of the day I just need to do a better job of executing my pitches.”

Eovaldi took a 7-3 lead into the fifth inning after the Rangers scored five unearned runs in the fourth. The Jays then scored four runs to knock out Eovaldi after 4 2/3 innings.

Six of the seven runs scored against Toronto starter Chris Bassitt in 3 2/3 innings were unearned. Bassitt had a throwing error during Texas’ two-run third inning.

“We didn’t help ourselves defensively, taking care of the ball to secure some outs,” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said.

The Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a double and two singles, his most hits in a game since having four on Sept. 3. Guerrero is hitting .384 since the All-Star break.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Blue Jays: SS Bo Bichette (calf) was activated and played for the first time since July 19, going 2 for 5 with an RBI. … OF Daulton Varsho (shoulder) was placed on the 10-day injured list and will have rotator cuff surgery … INF Will Wagner (knee inflammation) was placed on the 60-day list.

UP NEXT

Rangers: LHP Chad Bradford (5-3, 3.97 ERA) will pitch Wednesday night’s game on extended five days’ rest after allowing career highs in hits (nine), runs (eight) and home runs (three) in 3 2/3 innings losing at Arizona on Sept. 14.

Blue Jays: RHP Bowden Francis (8-4, 3.50) has had two no-hitters get away in the ninth inning this season, including in his previous start against the New York Mets on Sept. 11. Francis is the first major-leaguer to have that happen since Rangers Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan in 1989.

—

AP MLB:

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Billie Jean King set to earn another honor with the Congressional Gold Medal

Published

6 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

WASHINGTON (AP) — Billie Jean King will become the first individual female athlete to be awarded the Congressional Gold Medal.

Reps. Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania and Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey announced Tuesday that their bipartisan legislation had passed the House of Representatives and would be sent to President Joe Biden for his signature.

The bill to honor King, the tennis Hall of Famer and activist, had already passed unanimously in the Senate.

Sherrill, a Democrat, said in a statement that King’s “lifetime of advocacy and hard work changed the landscape for women and girls on the court, in the classroom, and the workplace.”

The bill was introduced last September on the 50th anniversary of King’s victory over Bobby Riggs in the “Battle of the Sexes,” still the most-watched tennis match of all-time. The medal, awarded by Congress for distinguished achievements and contributions to society, has previously been given to athletes including baseball players Jackie Robinson and Roberto Clemente, and golfers Jack Nicklaus, Byron Nelson and Arnold Palmer.

King had already been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009. Fitzpatrick, a Republican, says she has “broken barriers, led uncharted paths, and inspired countless people to stand proudly with courage and conviction in the fight for what is right.”

___

AP tennis:

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Account tweaks for young Instagram users ‘minimum’ expected by B.C., David Eby says

Published

6 hours ago

September 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

SURREY, B.C. – Premier David Eby says new account control measures for young Instagram users introduced Tuesday by social media giant Meta are the “minimum” expected of tech companies to keep kids safe online.

The parent company of Instagram says users in Canada and elsewhere under 18 will have their accounts set to private by default starting Tuesday, restricting who can send messages, among other parental controls and settings.

Speaking at an unrelated event Tuesday, Eby says the province began talks with social media companies after threatening legislation that would put big tech companies on the hook for “significant potential damages” if they were found negligent in failing to keep kids safe from online predators.

Eby says the case of Carson Cleland, a 12-year-old from Prince George, B.C., who took his own life last year after being targeted by a predator on Snapchat, was “horrific and totally preventable.”

He says social media apps are “nothing special,” and should be held to the same child safety standards as anyone who operates a place that invites young people, whether it’s an amusement park, a playground or an online platform.

In a progress report released Tuesday about the province’s engagement with big tech companies including Google, Meta, TikTok, Spapchat and X, formerly known as Twitter, the provincial government says the companies are implementing changes, including a “trusted flagger” option to quickly remove intimate images.

— With files from The Associated Press

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024

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