Ex-Blackhawks Player: Assistant Coach Sexually Assaulted Me and Team Ignored It

A former hockey player for the Chicago Blackhawks is suing his old team, accusing them of mishandling a sexual assault complaint he made against a then-assistant coach. The player, named only as “John Doe” in the lawsuit, says the Blackhawks ignored his claims that he and another teammate had been assaulted by coach Brad Aldrich in the run-up to the team’s 2010 Stanley Cup win. In the suit, Aldrich is accused of masturbating in front of the Blackhawks player without his consent, sending “inappropriate text messages” to the player, and threatening to “physically, financially and emotionally” harm him if he didn’t “engage in sexual activity” with Aldrich. While the Blackhawks have said that the lawsuit is baseless, a WBEZ investigation showed that Aldrich has a 2013 conviction for sexual misconduct. “This entire man’s life has been destroyed,” an attorney for the player said. “This has really ruined… …his professional career.”