St. Catharines Mayor ‘deeply disappointed’ by IceDogs allegations
Published April 7, 2022 at 10:15 am
After the shocking suspension of Niagara IceDogs GM Joey Burke and coach Billy Burke by the Ontario Hockey League yesterday (April 6), St. Catharines Mayor Walter Sendzik and CAO David Oakes said they were “deeply disappointed” in a release today.
The hockey pair were suspended “indefinitely” by the OHL yesterday after an investigation into a March 6, 2022 WhatsApp conversation between the Burkes.
The league ruled that the texts ran “counter to the OHL’s Onside program which emphasizes the importance of demonstrating respect for women through actions and words.”
According to TSN’s Rick Westhead, the language in the texts was “highly explicit and insulting” about a female colleague in the IceDogs organization.
The connection between the city and IceDogs is a clear one. While both Burkes are IceDogs employees, the city owns the Meridian Centre, the arena the OHL club calls home.
So even though the Burkes are not city employees, ultimately what happened took place on city property, thus causing Sendzik and Oakes to issue a statement.
“We are proud to have the Niagara IceDogs call St. Catharines home,” said the pair in a joint statement. “While we are deeply disappointed by the allegations, it should not undermine the players, fans and other employees who strive to be positive and active members of the community.”
Saying they could not speak to the allegations against the Burkes, Sendzik and Oakes said, “We respect the decision by the OHL.”
They did venture into the notion of the Meridian Centre being a city facility, noting the city has something called an R-Zone policy for all its facilities which “commits to maintaining an environment of respect for others. The Meridian Centre – much like any city-owned facility – is bound by this policy, which aims to create positive, safe, enjoyable and supportive environments for users, visitors and staff. Inappropriate behaviour will not be condoned.”
In the end, the Burkes were suspended by the league, as well as a $150,000 fine split between the pair and the team.
Below is the full statement from Sendzik and Oakes.
