Report: Hockey Canada approached sponsors about removing top executives and board members

Hockey Canada recently made an offer with the sponsors that they’ve lost over the past several months, saying they’d remove some top executives and board members if the sponsors returned.

Hockey Canada appears to be working towards retaining its reputation – and sponsorship money – with this offer, but some of the sponsors believe that it isn’t enough.

“Some [sponsors] said the departures on offer would not be sufficient, and that wholesale change to Hockey Canada’s operations is needed,” said Susan Krashinsky Robertson of The Globe & Mail in the article breaking this story.

Hockey Canada has found itself engulfed in controversy after it was alleged that members of both the 2003 and 2018 Canadian World Junior teams were involved in acts of sexual assault. The organization as a whole has been under fire for failing to properly investigate the accusations. This has led to many Hockey Canada operations taking a hit, particularly the recent 2022 World Juniors in Edmonton, which saw consistently low attendance numbers, even games Canada participated in, averaging out at just under 2,000 people per game based on ticket sales.

Hockey Canada had its funding frozen by the Canadian government and has also seen several major sponsors suspend support of the organization and their events in the wake of the scandals, which Hockey Canada has still been unable to win back. Sponsors including Scotiabank, Canadian Tire, Tim Hortons, Telus, and Esso all announced suspension of their sponsorship in the past several months, all big name corporations in Canada with lots of social backing and money.

Calls have been made for Hockey Canada CEO Scott Smith and other top executives to step down, but that has not happened. The biggest change was the resigning of Michael Brind’Amour, a member of the Board of Directors, and the appointment of Andrea Skinner in his place.