JULY 25, 2021 – The ultimate goal in any professional team sport at the highest level is ultimate victory.
The Habs had a taste this year by fumbling into the final before being blown out of the water by the defending Champs.
Now with word that Shea Weber may be done, along with other team challenges, GM Marc Bergevin and his team selected 18 year old stuf Logan Mailloux with the 31st pic of the 1st Round.
Normally a 6’3 215 pounder with the ability to skate, rack up points, and have attitude isn’t available at that point of the draft. Really, look it up. Mailloux just turned 18 in April.
Problem is we live in very odd and hypocritical times. The optics of this amazing draft pic (who speaks French and has a French surname to boot) was convicted of the crime of taking photos of an intimate act with a consenting adult while he was only 17. The young woman was rightfully upset at him sharing said pics via social media.
That’s bad. It’s not remotely as bad as some of the allegations of behavior of some current Habs and other NHL’ers and we won’t even talk about the days of yore and behavior of some Hall of Famers over the years.
Logan messed up by 2021 standards. He said his mea culpa. He paid his fine. He suggested that he not be drafted this year and earn his way back with better behavior. Of course a solid year in Junior would probably have made him a top ten pick. ( I know. I’m jaded)
The drama and rending of cloth spewing about on social media is embarrassing frankly. It’s not so much the drama by people that never really supported hockey, but the pandering by many in the hockey establishment (whose names I won’t mention) bleating about how horrible the Habs selecting a future Shea Weber with a 31st pick was.
It wasn’t. It was a great hockey move.
The bigger problem is that Marc Bergevin has taken the 5th essentially by saying that he was unware of the Chicago sex scandal while he worked there. That won’t wash in the end.
The big problem in Chicago is that the scandal was covered up and the alleged perp allowed to get a letter of reference that led to him ultimately getting charged again against younger alleged victims. That’s ugly. And those big US lawsuits, if not settled, will result in a lot of exposure that frankly should lead to the termination of anyone tainted which might include Mr. Bergevin who has stated he knew nothing back then.
That’s real crime. That’s sex abuse. There are real victims on that trail and it’s doubtful that anyone in higher management wouldn’t have known about it if the allegations about some of the Chicago victims being harassed by their own teammates is true.
So let’s not be hypocrites. If there was any action to be taken regarding Mr. Mailloux it should’ve been by the NHL BEFORE the draft. None was taken. None should be taken at this time. Young Mr. Mailloux hopefully has learned from his lesson, and hopefully other young players learn from his mistake.
And hopefully one day all NHL teams, and the league will immediately take appropriate action when allegations of sexual impropriety of any sort present themselves.
jamie@cornwallfreenews.com