Editor’s Choice: The Blackhawks & Words Worth Repeating

There were reminders on the ice and off of it that the Chicago Blackhawks experienced on Sunday. One was the 4-2 loss to the New Jersey Devils which ended up creating a players only meeting 20 minutes after the game. Accountability was the theme.

Earlier in the day, accountability was the theme again when a story from the Chicago Tribune’s Phil Thompson reported that a second lawsuit stemming from former Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich had been filed. The plantiff, referred to as John Doe in the new lawsuit, was referred to as “Black Ace 1″ in the investigation by Jenner and Block. According to Thompson’s article, the new lawsuit, from the law firm Romanucci & Blandin seeks the following:

“What we aim to do with this lawsuit is continue to ensure that teams remain accountable,” Romanucci said. “We have a specific mission in mind, certainly that the Blackhawks remain accountable for the changes that they have promised that they have put in place with regard to prevention of these sexual abuses.”

The main word? Accountability.

The new locker room is trying to build as the sins of the previous regime continue to serve reminders of what happens if it ceases to exist.

It’s not the fault of the former. But the term of accountability is certainly something that surrounded the Blackhawks Sunday on several different levels.

Blackhawks Vow They Have Learned

Thompson wrote that while the Blackhawks released a statement to the Tribune, they wouldn’t comment until they learned more about the pending litigation . But their statement included to the Tribune reminded that they took the necessary steps to install leadership that would reflect their values of providing a space that will be safe for both staff and players. In short, they changed.

But the lesson here is that it can’t be simply surface level. The leadership in the past was transactional, as evidenced by what occurred. The Blackhawks have the chance to be transformational, and from the changes made already, it appears they’re on their way.

But it’s just that with the accountability piece — it must be indeed authentic and transformational. An opportunity to take the horrible, and outright failure and truly learn from it. Be better. Never, ever, let it happen again.

Accountability is only as good as the lessons learned and the follow through. The Blackhawks have shown that so far. But this is another reminder of the vow they’ve made–and that years ago, it wasn’t enough.