The Boston Bruins made headlines for the wrong reasons when they signed Mitchell Miller a few weeks ago. Since then, an independent investigation has been carried out to study the file. Thus, the Bruins organization will have to apply multiple recommendations to prevent such an error from happening again.
The purpose of this survey was to improve the Bruins’ player hiring and vetting process. She also wanted to be able to understand and explain how the team had been able to retain the services of a player with a history of bullying.
Former Attorney General Loretta Lynch and the firm Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison conducted a series of interviews with Bruins employees. They also reviewed thousands of documents relating to Miller’s signature.
The organization is committed to respecting the various recommendations submitted by the investigation group. Going forward, the Bruins should establish clear written policies relating to the verification of players’ off-ice conduct, including the identification of questionable behavior requiring detailed verification and documented resolution; create timelines and responsibilities for investigating the off-ice environment or actions of young players; maintain centralized verification documentation including any off-ice issues and ensure that this documentation is available to all parties involved in the process; follow up to ensure that all verification tasks are clearly assigned and tracked; use third-party, independent resources to investigate and resolve issues, then determine if there are any specific training or rehabilitation programs players should attend based on the nature of their issues.
“Today’s announcement demonstrates the organization’s commitment to our values and our hiring process,” said Charlie Jacobs, team president.
The investigation also revealed that the Bruins had already implemented a player verification process, that the team had not made any mistakes and that no employee had failed in the process of hiring Miller. Nevertheless, the firm still took care to submit various recommendations to ensure that the process was solidified.