Marc Crawford is officially back with the Chicago Blackhawks. His month-long suspension is officially over.
The embattled Crawford, former Stanley Cup winning head coach of the 1996 Colorado Avalanche, who went on to coach the Canucks, Kings, Stars, Senators, and is now an assistant to Jeremy Colliton in Chicago. In his earlier years, he admitted to incidents where he abused players, physically or verbally.
The first allegation came to light in 2016 from former LA King Patrick O'Sullivan, but it was not until the NHL recently committed to cleaning up the coaching ranks because of the scandal associated with Peters, did Crawford end up facing actual discipline.
Crawford seemed to have taken the matter seriously, and claims that even before the suspension, he had been attending therapy sessions on a regular basis over the last decade. When asked by Chicago Tribune 'Hawks beat writer Jimmy Greenfield why he chose to go to therapy, Crawford responded with: "Just felt I was apologizing too much and I didn't like that. I didn't like that feeling. still don't like that, it's uncomfortable for me to feel that way. Finding out why I am like I am takes a lot of introspection."
Colliton sees Crawford as a mentor. They both became head coaches at 33, and the now 58-year-old Crawford seems to have turned a page. "...my experience with Marc has been great," said Colliton. "He's carried himself in a way that's been an example of how to act. Happy to have him here."
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Source: Chicago Tribune
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