Seven Ottawa Senators players issued an apology on Monday after the publication of a video in which they sharply criticized an assistant coach during an Uber ride ahead of a game with the Phoenix Coyotes last month.
In the video, the players share the opinions of assistant coach Martin Raymond, who is responsible for organizing the team’s penalty killing efforts.
Raymond Blasted by Players in Video
In the five-minute recording, which appeared on YouTube and social media – presumably uploaded by the driver of the vehicle – the players confirm that they play for Ottawa, then start complaining about Raymond and the team’s penalty kill unit.
“Marty Raymond, the only coach in NHL history to have the worst power-play and the worst PK within a calendar year,” opines forward Matt Duchene.
Raymond was in charge of the Senators power play unit to start last season. But with both the power play and penalty kill units struggling midway through the year, head coach Guy Boucher swapped Raymond and assistant coach Marc Crawford’s roles, putting Raymond in charge of the special teams defense instead.
That hasn’t exactly led to outstanding results. Currently, the Senators have the second-worst penalty kill unit in the NHL at just a 68.8 percent success rate, ahead of only the Florida Panthers (68.4 percent). The top mark in the league belongs to the Tampa Bay Lightning, who have successfully killed 90.4 percent of their opponents’ power play opportunities.
The comments only got worse from there, as players criticized Raymond’s coaching contributions.
“Do you notice that when [Raymond] runs the video, if you actually do pay attention, he doesn’t ever teach you anything?” asked defender Chris Wideman. “He just commentates what’s happening.”
“Here’s the other thing: we don’t change anything, ever,” Duchene replied. “So why do we even have a meeting? I haven’t paid attention in three weeks.”
Uber Says Recording Was ‘Unacceptable’
Others appearing on the video include Thomas Chabot, Dylan DeMelo, Alex Formenton, Chris Tierney, and Colin White.
On Monday, the seven players issued a joint apology to Raymond and the team for what they thought was a private conversation.
“We want to apologize publicly to Marty Raymond, our teammates and coaches for our comments in Phoenix, Arizona on October 29,” the statement reads. “Our private conversation was recorded without our knowledge or consent. We’re passionate about our team, and focusing on growing together. We are grateful for the support of our fans and organization. This is an important learning experience, and we will do better.”
Coach Guy Boucher also issued a statement, reiterating his support for Raymond and saying he had confidence that the players’ apology was sincere.
While plenty of criticism has been placed on the players for making their comments, many have also noted that the posting of the video was a violation of their privacy. While Arizona only requires one-party consent for recording video – meaning the footage was recorded legally – Uber officials have made it clear that what happened is not permissible under their own rules.
“This is a clear violation of our terms of service and we worked vigorously to investigate this issue,” Uber Canada general manager Rob Khazzam wrote on Twitter. “Filming or recording passengers without their consent is totally unacceptable and if reported/detected we will investigate and take action to preserve our communities privacy and integrity.”
The Senators are currently in sixth place in the Atlantic Division with 13 points. The team is not considered a Stanley Cup contender, with William Hill offering 300/1 on Ottawa winning a championship this season.