During Thursday’s press conference -- in which Patrick Kane made his first public remarks following sexual assault allegations -- Blackhawks team president John McDonough insisted he was “anything but tone deaf.”
Many disagreed.
Vehemently.
McDonough and the Blackhawks organization came under heavy criticism for how they handled today’s presser, in which none of the four speakers -- Kane, McDonough, GM Stan Bowman and head coach Joel Quenneville -- answered questions about the situation, saying they would only respond to hockey-related queries.
And that’s what they did.
Despite a number of Kane-related questions from the gathered media, all replies were variations of “we have the utmost respect for the legal process,” and “we have no comment at this time.”
What really drew the public’s ire, though, wasn’t necessarily the ducking of questions -- it was the statements that followed Kane’s portion of the presser. McDonough began with a lengthy offseason recap, followed by an outline of the team’s goals for the upcoming campaign.
He, Bowman and Quenneville also expressed their excitement about being back on the University of Notre Dame campus, and getting to see the Fighting Irish take on Georgia Tech in football this weekend.
Hence the accusations of tone deafness.
A gathering of some responses, via social media:
Horrible miss by the Hawks here. No point to this whatsoever. Embarrassing and insulting to the intelligence of fans and media alike.
— Jay Zawaski (@jayzawaski) September 17, 2015
This is one of the most tone deaf things I've ever seen.
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) September 17, 2015
Joel Quenneville looks like he'd rather be getting a root canal.
— Chris Kuc (@ChrisKuc) September 17, 2015
I've been working for @TBNSports since 1987. This is one of the most bizarre, surreal pressers I've ever been a part of.
— Mike Harrington (@ByMHarrington) September 17, 2015
@TramyersCSN but he appreciates them. That's what matters.
— Stephen Whyno (@SWhyno) September 17, 2015
Following the initial four speakers, three of Kane’s teammates -- Duncan Keith, Brent Seabrook and captain Jonathan Toews -- met with the media and, similarly, dodged most Kane-related queries.
There was a telling moment, however, when the three were asked if Kane remained a leader on the team:
Duncan Keith on whether Patrick Kane can still be a leader for the #Blackhawks: "I think so." Wasn't exactly a ringing endorsement.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) September 17, 2015