Winnipeg Jets postpone news conference on Cheveldayoff decision

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WINNIPEG — The Winnipeg Jets announced that the news conference planned for Monday regarding the NHL’s decision to not discipline general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff is temporarily delayed.

Chairman Mark Chipman and Cheveldayoff were set to attend the news conference. However, the Jets released a statement saying Chipman is experiencing a severe case of vertigo and undergoing medical care.

The statement notes the postponement is because Chipman is “steadfast in his demand that he participates in this press event in order to properly answer any questions at the same time as Mr. Cheveldayoff.”

The news conference will be rescheduled to the earliest possible time, which has yet to be determined.

On Friday, CTV News Winnipeg reported that the NHL determined that Cheveldayoff was not responsible for the improper decisions made by the Chicago Blackhawks, and that he won’t be disciplined as a result of a sexual assault investigation involving a former assistant coach.

An investigation report released last week revealed that that the Blackhawks mishandled allegations of an assistant coach sexually assaulting a player during the 2010 season.

At the time, Cheveldayoff was the assistant general manager of the team.

In a statement released on Friday, Commissioner Gary Bettman said Cheveldayoff was not a member of the Blackhawks senior leadership in 2010 and can’t be assigned responsibility for the club’s actions and inactions.

“He provided a full account of his degree of involvement in the matter, which was limited exclusively to his attendance at a single meeting, and I found him to be extremely forthcoming and credible in our discussion,” the statement said.

The NHL has fined the Blackhawks $2 million.

Blackhawks general manager and president of hockey operations Stan Bowman resigned from his position. Joel Quenneville, head coach of the team from 2008 to 2019, resigned from his position as head coach of the Florida Panthers.

- With files from CTV’s Katherine Dow.