As the Blackhawks face allegations and lawsuits, their fans are left to evaluate their loyalty

CHICAGO, IL - APRIL 17:  Fans gather at the United Center for Game Three of the Western Conference Quarterfinals between the Chicago Blackhawks and the St. Louis Blues during the 2016 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at the United Center on April 17, 2016 in Chicago, Illinois.  (Photo by Bill Smith/NHLI via Getty Images)
By Mark Lazerus and Scott Powers
Aug 12, 2021

Sandra Muer’s collection of Blackhawks memorabilia has grown immensely over the last decade. She has Duncan Keith and Brian Campbell game-used sticks. She has signed pucks from Keith, Campbell, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Corey Crawford, among others. She has goal pucks from Keith, Patrick Kane and Patrick Sharp. She has jewelry made from pieces of game-used skate blades of Keith, Kane, Crawford, Marian Hossa and Jonathan Toews.

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And the memories well exceed the items. She was in the stands for Andrew Shaw’s “I love shin pads” game-winning goal in the 2013 Stanley Cup Final. She went to every home game during the Blackhawks’ 2015 Stanley Cup run and kept the ticket stubs and rally towels from each game. She traveled to Prague to watch the Blackhawks play in 2019 and created lifelong friendships with others she met on the trip. Every year she’d taken her extended family to a game around Christmas.

And now all of that is stored away, the items in her closet, the memories in her mind. Muer has closely paid attention to the lawsuits against the Blackhawks alleging they mishandled sexual assault complaints made by a former player against then video coach Brad Aldrich in 2010. She was desperately hoping the Blackhawks would dispute the allegations, but she’s heard nothing from the organization publicly or seen anything in their court responses doing so. When she recently read the revised complaint against the Blackhawks that included allegations of bullying and homophobic slurs from teammates, Muer had enough. She wrote a letter to the Blackhawks expressing her feelings on how the organization has responded to the allegations, referenced her own experience with sexual assault and asked for the money back on her season ticket deposit for the upcoming season.

“To be clear, this was not easy for me,” Muer said by phone. “This was super difficult. I rode with them through thick and thin. I rode with them, you know, through the bad hockey decisions. I rode with them through a ton of different things. I mean, I went to Prague to see these guys play. I’ve traveled all over the U.S. and Canada to see them play. I’ve invested so much time, money and passion into this team.

“Sending that letter and giving up season tickets that I waited like eight years to get, it wasn’t an easy choice for me. When I was going to the games, like the last season before they shut down in 2020 in March, I went to every game that season except for two and I live 2 1/2 hours away. So, yeah, it took a lot for me to do this.”

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The Blackhawks’ legal fate remains uncertain. So, too, is their fate in the court of public opinion. Will more fans turn cold toward the organization, as Muer did? Will ticket sales take a hit, ending the team’s streak of more than 500 consecutive sellouts? Will corporate partners be reluctant to work with the Blackhawks, cutting off a vital financial lifeline? Will the Blackhawks’ brand, so ubiquitous and revered in Chicago and so well-known and well-respected beyond, be tarnished?

The Athletic reached out to 25 season ticket holders, as well as nearly two dozen major corporate partners and an expert in sports marketing and the social impact of sports, to get a sense of how the general public is feeling about the Blackhawks as the organization stays mostly mum and fights the allegations in civil court.

And it’s clear the Blackhawks have some work to do to regain trust and credibility.

“I was waiting to hear what happened, but they kept saying nothing and nothing and their responses in the lawsuit where they’re saying, oh, statute of limitations, oh, technical argument,” Muer said. “I get that’s how you respond, but they’ve done zero to dispel that these facts being alleged are true.

“It’s like I wrote in the letter: Words are cheap; show me. Do something for those guys (the plaintiffs). Make the people who did that accountable. It’s great you want to go forward and be a different organization going forward, but you have to acknowledge what you did and you need to make it right. The true character of someone isn’t revealed in the mistake they made. It’s revealed in how they deal with that mistake and what they do afterward. … Do a thorough investigation, acknowledge what they did wrong, fix it going forward and hold people accountable that caused it to happen. That would bring me back and I could be proud of my team again. But I don’t have a lot of faith that they’re going to do the holding accountable thing.”


The Chicago Blackhawks are a business, first and foremost. But in the eyes of Cheri Bradish, the director of Future of Sport Lab and Sport Initiatives at Ryerson University in Toronto, they’re also a public good, a vital part of the community. In her view, all pro sports teams are.

“From a 10,000-feet-above lens, sport is done best and operated best as a strong social example in one’s community,” said Bradish, who specializes in sports marketing and the social impact of sports. “And it’s disappointing when we have these situations that still don’t always demonstrate the best social decisions.”

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In the last year, Bradish has seen the NHL commit, then falter, on diversity initiatives that sprung out of the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis last year. She’s seen the Montreal Canadiens draft Logan Mailloux, and the immediate backlash both the team and league faced. And she’s seen the Blackhawks handle the lawsuits with what she called “tone-deafness.”

But she’s also seen NHL teams celebrate Nashville prospect Luke Prokop’s decision to come out as gay. She’s seen corporate partners in all realms of business make a positive impact during the pandemic. Corporate social responsibility — CSR in business jargon — is an integral part of any organization’s business plan.

And Bradish said simply staying quiet and hoping to weather the storm is no longer a wise strategy.

“We’re beyond the point in sound business practices where you ignore, or you don’t face head-on, some of these incidents that could be brand-breakers,” Bradish said.

Bradish said the “best-case scenario” in these situations is for the team’s senior management to deal with it “head-on,” even if that means admitting a mistake and taking responsibility.

“And then not only say we’re committed to dealing with this, but in some cases once the investigation is revealed, be authentic to the situation at hand,” she said. “If the allegations are true around sexual assault, talk about it — ‘Here are some resources we’re partnering with it, some sexual assault centers or abuse lines, here’s where we can authentically help the community understand this issue and how we’re dealing with it.’ To me, the best-case examples of leadership in sports are those who have said we had a problem, it was on our watch, here’s what we found and here is our stand against it. As you know, sport businesses are businesses, but they’re also public trusts and they need to take a very high example when they’re dealing with these negative situations.”

The Blackhawks have done little to publicly address the allegations. There’s been no comment from owner Rocky Wirtz, and general manager Stan Bowman — a central figure in the lawsuits as one of the four team leaders who were allegedly told of the sexual assault claims by skills coach Paul Vincent and chose not to report them — has sidestepped questions about the lawsuits by pointing to the ongoing investigation. The Blackhawks did commission an independent review by the law firm Jenner & Block to investigate the situation, and team CEO Danny Wirtz said he’ll make those findings public when the investigation is complete.

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But Bradish noted that the investigation “buys them time,” and that once the season starts, she says the team likely hopes that the focus will be on hockey, not the lawsuits. Winning has a way of making some people forget.

Corporate partners might have even greater sway, however. Just as controversial television figures have been run off the air once their advertisers abandoned them, a team’s hand can be forced by the companies that work with it. The Athletic contacted 22 of the Blackhawks’ biggest partners — BMO Harris Bank, Clorox, Bud Light, Boeing, Jersey Mike’s Subs, FanDuel Sportsbook, AT&T, Chevy Drives Chicago, Enterprise, Constellation, Chick-fil-A, Hyundai USA, United Airlines, Lexus, Captain Morgan, TransUnion, Fifth Third Bank, Athletico, American Express, Dunkin’ Donuts, Jewel Osco and ServiceMaster Recovery Management.

Three responded with a no-comment, TransUnion said it no longer works with the Blackhawks but said that decision predates the lawsuits, and the other 18 didn’t respond at all.

(The Athletic ran advertisements on the United Center scoreboard during the 2019-20 season, but that deal expired in June 2020 and was not extended.)

“You might see a public outcry, but it’s when the corporate partner and the pocketbook is impacted in a significant way, that’s historically when you see organizations try to rise to make the best decisions,” Bradish said.

If corporate partners are pressing the Blackhawks to make changes, or to address the lawsuits differently, they’re not saying so publicly.

That leaves the fans — the ticket-buying, jersey-wearing, TV-watching fans — as the biggest influencer to the Blackhawks’ bottom line, and therefore the Blackhawks’ decision-making.


Selling tickets hasn’t been a problem for the Blackhawks since Toews and Kane showed up and changed the trajectory of the franchise. Despite playing in the biggest arena in the league, with a capacity of more than 21,000, the team has sold out 531 consecutive home games, counting regular season and playoffs. Even as the team sputtered to four poor seasons in a row, the lengthy waiting list for season tickets easily covered any fans who chose not to renew their tickets.

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Given the excitement surrounding the acquisitions of defenseman Seth Jones and goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury, as well as the pending return of Toews after he missed all of last season, that’s unlikely to change right away. But there are certainly fans out there, like Muer, who are rethinking their spending habits, if not their allegiances. There are also those who have no intention of ever giving up their tickets. And there are countless people in between, feeling ambivalent as they try to weigh their love of the team — and the friendships and fun they’ve made at games over the years — with their disgust at the allegations levied against it.

Here are some examples from season ticket holders, some of whom chose to stay anonymous, or to use only their first names, to avoid any potential online backlash.

Kevin Carew: “Sports are so complicated now. Obviously, I don’t condone that horrible alleged behavior from the Hawks, but if I keep my tickets, does that mean I’m willing to look the other way? What a horrible moral dilemma.”

Anonymous: “My thoughts on my four tickets are waiting to see this smoking gun of the letter of recommendation or positive job review (for Aldrich) and see what the Wirtzes do with it. If it exists, with anyone still employed by the Blackhawks’ name on it, I think I will be asking for my money back as that would be inexcusable.”

Chuck: “I am a fan of the product on the ice. I go to be entertained. I do not let the actions of the ‘off-ice’ (and not just hockey) people dictate my actions. Do I consider it? Yes, along with everything else.”

Chris: “I have not given any consideration to giving them up. The allegations and lawsuits are irrelevant to my support of the organization. I’m not willing to pass judgment prematurely on (an) individual’s actions, nor am I willing to not be a fan of the Blackhawks due to these circumstances. … At the end of the day, I just want the Hawks to be relevant and win again.”

Drew: “We did decide to keep our tickets for this year since it is America and you are innocent until proven guilty. I think we will see where it goes and what the investigation turns up. There is certainly no place in our society for things like this, and if the Blackhawks did anything wrong, I’d want to see people held accountable. And if no one is, then we might come to a different decision on renewing for the 22-23 season.”

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Anonymous: “My biggest frustration at this point is the lack of transparency. The front office has not addressed the situation, and I feel like all of these trades are a smokescreen.”

Keith Mellen: “I am watching to see what the lawsuit and investigation find. I would hope that heads would roll and procedures would be put in place so this sort of thing would not happen in the future, if the investigation finds what is alleged to be true.”

Grant Miller: “Honestly, we are keeping our tickets for next year mainly because it was covered from our payments of the previous seasons. If we owed on the tickets, then we very likely would not have renewed. We usually raffle off some tickets at our office to patients, but we don’t plan to do that this year because of the allegations. It just isn’t sitting right. Four months ago, after our daughter was born, I was already cautiously avoiding buying newborn Blackhawks clothes to wear to games that had the Native American logo because that issue isn’t sitting right with me, either. Now it feels even weirder to think about taking our daughter to a game. Sure, she may be too young to understand any of this now, but I want to be that role model that helps her understand the right and wrong of things as she grows because my influence will matter.

“In contrast, I also know that the money spent on our tickets eventually gets funneled down to the payroll of our ticket rep, our beer vendor outside of our seats and the custodial staff. Normal people that don’t deserve to get dragged down in this process. I don’t stand by a single thing that they are doing, but I am OK with going to a game, paying for food and drink, and watching hockey.”

T.J. Jarosch, who gave up his tickets in May, before news of the lawsuits broke: “Ugh, I’ll still watch and follow. I’m loyal to a home team and can’t just give up hockey. More concerned with how I explain my thoughts to a 7- and 5-year-old. I’ll probably just be a much more casual fan. Games won’t be must-watch. (I) won’t buy or wear much merchandise.”

Erin: “I think it’s inevitable at this point that I’ll cancel my season tickets. My hesitation to do so up until now has been purely selfish; these tickets, games, and supporting this team have been uniquely tied to the relationship and memories I have with my dad.”

Eric Johnson: “I decided to give them up. Was a tough choice after 16 years. At first, I did it because of the money. Just charging way too much. Paying over $7,000 in tickets for a team going nowhere. Once the allegations came out, I felt even better about giving them up. Even all the current moves they are making does not want me to get them back.”

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Anonymous: “Even if it’s a legal argument to try to protect themselves, it’s hard to see how it’s a moral one they can make and still look themselves, their players and their fans in the eye.”

Tony Crisman: “I’m indifferent to the lawsuits. We buy tickets for the product on the ice. No change in plans here.”

Anonymous: “Honestly, I regret having season tickets this year. If I hadn’t already paid for half my season a year ago, I would want to give them up now. There’s no (good) benefits to being a STH (season ticket holder) anymore, and now with these allegations and lawsuits facing the Blackhawks, I hate that I’ve put money towards a team so badly managed. It’s embarrassing to be a fan.”

Tom Mahoney: “A few of the people in my group are not too thrilled in supporting the team, me included. It is too late to give up the (two tickets) for this year, but I would assume it will be our last year. It is a shame because they have been in the family since 1962.”

Matt: “I actually gave up my tickets for hockey reasons right before the allegations were made public. I would say I felt even better about giving them up when the allegations became public.”


Given the personal relationship that is usually built with a season ticket holder and their Blackhawks ticket representative, it’s likely the Blackhawks are well aware of how many — or how few — fans are wavering or are giving up their tickets because of the lawsuits and the revelations that have accompanied them.

Muer spoke with her ticket rep after sending her letter and was refunded for her tickets.

“She acknowledged that I had this complaint,” Muer said. “She didn’t argue with me at all. She did tell me she would get it up the chain. She wasn’t sure how far up it would go. She said as she and other reps hear from people they would be making communications known to their supervision. She handled it very well. They didn’t argue with me at all. They just said, yeah, we’ll give your money back. I don’t think they want anybody making a stink about not getting money back from that.”

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In response to The Athletic’s questions of how many requests they’ve gotten for ticket refunds in the last three months, the season ticket retention rate from last season, if they’ve lost any corporate sponsors due to the allegations or if they have a message for fans who are reconsidering their season tickets due to the allegations, the Blackhawks issued this statement:

“From major offseason moves on the ice to many fans’ first opportunity to join us back inside the United Center since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is strong excitement and demand leading into the 21-22 season. But most importantly, on and off the ice, the Blackhawks are committed to a positive culture. Our fans and partners understand that the independent investigation takes time to ensure it’s done thoroughly and properly, and they know our pledge to share results is important to our entire organization.”

Given the timing, the long-term effect of the lawsuits in terms of season ticket sales might not be felt until next year, if at all. Some fans are repulsed by the allegations that have surfaced. Some fans are indifferent. But many of them — like the Blackhawks’ corporate partners, most likely — are waiting for the truth before making any decisions on how to spend their money. Or at the very least, hoping that the truth comes out.

“It’s a shame in the NHL,” Bradish said. “There have been so many stops and starts in the NHL over the last year, over what is the culture of the management of the league. That should be dictated by how they respond to these situations. And (more) often than not, there is no response.”

(Photo: Bill Smith / NHLI via Getty Images)

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