Gary Bettman On Patrick Kane Situation: 'Terrible Thing' That NHL Will Watch Play Out
(CBS) In his first public remarks about the rape investigation surrounding Blackhawks star Patrick Kane, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman on Wednesday called the situation a "terrible thing" and indicated the league will show patience and let the legal process play out further before making a decision on Kane's status.
"Whenever a player is involved in something like Patrick Kane is subject to right now in terms of the authorities investigating and looking, it's unfortunate," Bettman told The Buffalo News. "It's a terrible thing, but we're going to have to watch the process play out and at the appropriate time we'll make whatever decisions have to be made at the time."
Under the collective bargaining agreement, the NHL has the right to suspend players for "conduct that is detrimental to or against the welfare of the league or the game of hockey," SI.com has reported.
"In terms of player conduct, overwhelmingly you look at NHL players and they conduct themselves magnificently on and off the ice," Bettman said Wednesday, according to The Buffalo News. "We, meaning the Players Association and the league, have a number of programs and counseling and educational forums in place to hopefully ensure players are focused on doing the right things -- which they do overwhelmingly. When you get a situation where there's this type of attention and focus, we believe you deal with it on a case-by-case basis because rarely are two of these circumstances identical."
Kane hasn't been charged in the case as officials with the Hamburg police and the Erie County District Attorney's Office continue to investigate the events surrounding the early morning hours of Aug. 2, when Kane returned to his Hamburg, N.Y., home with a friend, the alleged victim and one of her friends.
On Tuesday, the Erie County District Attorney's office postponed grand jury proceedings into the rape allegation against Kane. No specific reason was given, raising many questions. Evidence had been scheduled to be presented to jurors, but the hearing were postponed for about two weeks, the Associated Press reported.
On Wednesday, WIVB-TV in Buffalo reported that representatives for Kane and the accuser had sat down for settlement talks but were still "far" apart. In a Tuesday report, the Buffalo News indicated that settlement talks were a possible reason that the grand jury proceedings had been halted. There's been no official reason given, though.
For now, the NHL will watch the legal process play out like everyone else. For their part, the Blackhawks have remained silent as to whether Kane will participate when training camp starts Sept. 18.
