NHLPA Executive Board Tries To Fire Ombudsman And Others

During a conference call of the NHLPA executive board, a vote was taken to decide whether to keep ombudsman Buzz Hargrove and advisory board member Ron Pink, two men instrumental in the firing of Paul Kelly. Unfortunately for the players, there were not enough members on the conference call to make the vote official. From Ken Campbell of the Hockey News:

According to several sources close to the situation, there were not enough members of the executive board on the call to fire ombudsman Buzz Hargrove and advisory board member Ron Pink, but the players who were on the call did conduct a straw poll. In order for there to be an official vote, there must be 25 voting members available and there were fewer than 20 on the call at the time.

If anything, the straw poll supports the notion the NHLPA is likely in for a significant housecleaning at some point in the near future. In the unofficial vote, players reportedly voted 17-1 to re-work interim executive director Ian Penny’s five-year contract and voted overwhelmingly to relieve Hargrove and Pink of their duties.

This whole situation with the NHLPA this summer has gone past insane and is borderline institutional. The quicker that the union can put this mess behind them, the better off they will be.