Colin Campbell speaks publicly about emails
For the first time since it was revealed that he had sent inappropriate emails to former National Hockey League referee Dean Warren, Colin Campbell spoke publicly, defending himself on the NHL Networks ‘On the Fly’ program.
Campbell came under fire after it was revealed in a recent court case, with former referee Warren, that he has sent incriminating emails to the referee. Campbell is currently the NHL senior VP of Hockey Operations and is responsible for issuing suspension
to players who may deserve supplemental discipline. Often called the ‘czar of discipline’, Campbell is a major authority in the NHL.
Campbell was said to have sent Warren angry emails regarding calls the referee had made on his son Gregory Campbell, while he was with the Florida Panthers. The younger Campbell now plays for the Boston Bruins and many have speculated that Campbell may no
longer be the right man for the job, citing his bias towards his son. In addition, Campbell is said to have called current NHL centre Marc Savard a ‘fake-artist’, saying that the forward constantly embellishes calls and fakes injuries.
Pressure has been mounting over the past week and finally Campbell spoke publicly about the emails, refuting any claims that he was biased and stating that the emails were taken out of context and were from as far back as 2005.
The NHL has thrown their full support behind Campbell and both commissioner Gary Bettman and deputy commissioner Bill Daly have made public statements endorsing the job the senior VP has done.
“Obviously when you’re dealing with supplemental discipline, no two acts are the same, the context is different, the situation’s different, the players’ histories are different,” Bettman told NHL.com. “I’ve said repeatedly, supplemental disciplines are like
snow flakes, no two are the same. And to do it, and to do it well, that is administer supplemental discipline, you must know the game, you must know all aspects of the game, you must be able to distinguish between an intentional act and an accident resulting
from a hockey play,”
Regardless of the NHL’s support, the issue does not seem to be dying down and the possibility of diluting some of Campbell’s power seems to be a legitimate option.
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