Ben O’Connor released

[Hedd Wyn John]

The Devils very short press release didn't help things but people clearly have been making things up, spreading false stories and others take it as the truth.

The vaccine theory which I suspected was nonsense is one thing. The more damaging rumour doing the rounds was that there were issues with in the dressing room with BOC, that he had an ego or attitude. The vaccine something is something easily disproven but the latter rumour can end a career and be potentially very damaging. So Todd was right to go to social media about that.
I wouldn't say Todd's social media handling has been perfect but overall he's been straight to the point and has said what's needed to be said.

I know some people raised issue with his '“you can all go back to moaning about us losing to the Steelers” comment in the mask/drunk fans thread but to me that was Todd's tongue in cheek poking fun at the endless doom merchants on the forum. It's the kinda statement you say out loud with a wink or a grin. But it doesn't come across the same way in written form. Todd was definitely NOT having a go at fans. Far from it.

 

[E.D.S.]

A forum is up for debates.

Of course people are going to mention why Ben left the club.

There is no need for Todd to answer us.

They no the real reason and that's it.

Agree they don’t need to answer to us. Absolutely agree with you here. My point is more that the lack of information naturally drives a conversation or rumour. To come out retrospectively and add more information to help a situation is my issue. Try and reduce that risk upfront.

 

[moggy#9]

He no longer draws a salary from the club. By all accounts the team played better without him. This has win win written all over it. We will probably never know the real truth about his departure and why should we? I just think his omission has been a much needed boost to an underperforming team in a strange kind of way. Proof that less is more in a sense.

It makes me wonder if the upturn was because a source of conflict in the dressing room was gone, or because it was taken as a shot across the bows of some others.

 

[E.D.S.]

The Devils very short press release didn't help things but people clearly have been making things up, spreading false stories and others take it as the truth.

The vaccine theory which I suspected was nonsense is one thing. The more damaging rumour doing the rounds was that there were issues with in the dressing room with BOC, that he had an ego or attitude. The vaccine something is something easily disproven but the latter rumour can end a career and be potentially very damaging. So Todd was right to go to social media about that.
I wouldn't say Todd's social media handling has been perfect but overall he's been straight to the point and has said what's needed to be said.

I know some people raised issue with his '“you can all go back to moaning about us losing to the Steelers” comment in the mask/drunk fans thread but to me that was Todd's tongue in cheek poking fun at the endless doom merchants on the forum. It's the kinda statement you say out loud with a wink or a grin. But it doesn't come across the same way in written form. Todd was definitely NOT having a go at fans. Far from it.

Agree again but that in itself is naive. If he was delivering that with a nod and a cheeky wink then that is never going to come across in written format. I don’t know Todd at all. Never spoken to him. I don’t know his character. I wouldn’t know he was doing it tongue in cheek. On the face of it, it came across as patronising and very annoying to me (personal opinion).

 

[Hedd Wyn John]

Agree again but that in itself is naive. If he was delivering that with a nod and a cheeky wink then that is never going to come across in written format. I don’t know Todd at all. Never spoken to him. I don’t know his character. I wouldn’t know he was doing it tongue in cheek. On the face of it, it came across as patronising and very annoying to me (personal opinion).

I don't know Todd. He's emailed me once & I've had the briefest of chats with him in person. (We shared a joke about his coaching career)
From what I can tell, he's a genuine guy, he knows the fans & is trying his best. He knows the hockey world like the back of his hand - & the damage rumours can do to careers so he wouldn't be posting on social media regarding BOC unless it was needed.

That said Todd is not a PR guy, NHL teams would have a PR manager & lawyers handling club statements.

Should Todd have made that "moaning" comment in the mask/drunk thread?

No.

A PR Manager at a NHL club or Premier league football club would have looked at that and said "that comment doesn't add anything to the statement & is open to being interpreted in a negative way" we should cut it from the statement.

So yes I can see why some fans didn't like the comment but thats an extremely minor thing after all the things Todd has done to turn things around and make this club successful.

 

[Earnie]

Personally I do not go along with the ‘no vax’ theory.
Would have happened long ago if that was the case.

 

[Pembo]

Think BOC’s departure from us & the statement is being conflated with the issues surrounding his departure from the Steelers. Steelers fans feel he left under a cloud but it’s difficult as the age of social media means it’s difficult to disentangle rumour from fact, and speculation is the fuel that drives forums and social media. Essentially people love a bit of gossip. It’s a shame things didn’t work out for him here and hopefully he’ll find a good level of hockey elsewhere. McNulty looked better against Steelers than previous game and will be great if he takes his chance as the season progresses.

 

[kingmo19.1]

Many a time you’ll never really get to hear the truth why some players are released by some clubs - it would be far too embarrassing for them to publish the real facts. I’ve heard some absolute beauties in the past.

The standard PR output is to thank the player for his services and the club are looking to move in a slightly different direction etc etc etc ….

No idea what hat happened in BOC’s case, but hardly surprising some fans jumped to conclusion as the original statement was exceedingly brief.

 

[Wannabe2]

Does it really matter why it happened Ben is gone, we wish him the best it’s history now, and we move on, well hopefully we do.

 

[Mazzoak]

This starts to grate on me a bit. Whilst the suggestion that he was released due to no vaccine or any other reason isn’t particularly helpful and yes it can be damaging to the individual, I think this shows a huge naivety with Todd and the Devils. Whilst the Devils and BOC have a right to decide what they communicate the official wording from the Devils in the initial communication was poor, lacked any information so naturally people then draw their own conclusions. With social media, people are able to express those opinions, opinions then grow arms and legs and for some they’ll then become fact. This isn’t new. It just happens faster these days because of social media. The Devils need to take some responsibility here. If the initial post referenced hockey related reasons and a pat on the back for his time then those so called “damaging rumours”‘don’t happen.
Starting to get a bit bored of Todd and his holier than thou behaviour. I got a little annoyed with his “you can all go back to moaning about us losing to the Steelers” comment when we/I was concerned about the drunkeness and lack of mask adherence. This seems like another example. Todd’s been faultless in my eyes for years now and his own personal high standards are what drive this club forward each and every year. Most of the time he’s doing it dragging the club and people single handed to the level he expects but this for me is a disappointment. I hope this is a momentary blip and not a step into the David Simms world of communication.
I don’t need to grow up. I’m part of a Devils community that allows me to discuss every aspect of Devils life whilst knowing buggar all of the truth. It’s what we all do. It’s what this forum and social media is for. If the Devils want to control a situation better or protect a player that is exiting then surely a more professional and informative release statement would of helped. ‘We’ve released BOC’ was hardly that.

Todds been playing catch up since he came to Cardiff, he reacts after the horse has bolted rather than thinking maybe l need to secure the horse in case it bolts. He‘s just a perfect example of being in a position granted by friendship as opposed to leadership on merit. I’m not sure he’d be in that position on abilities, that’s obviously just my opinion based on countless issues without knowing the full facts behind the decisions. Having said that, we are all guilty of condemning politicians and people in the media on similar opinion based conclusions.

 

[katie.sinclair1]

I certainly wouldn't question Todd's ability. In my opinion our club is where it is now as a result of his knowledge of the EIHL hockey environment and his working relationship with our owners. That is the bedrock of what has followed in recent years.

 

[Wannabe2]

Todds been playing catch up since he came to Cardiff, he reacts after the horse has bolted rather than thinking maybe l need to secure the horse in case it bolts. He‘s just a perfect example of being in a position granted by friendship as opposed to leadership on merit. I’m not sure he’d be in that position on abilities, that’s obviously just my opinion based on countless issues without knowing the full facts behind the decisions. Having said that, we are all guilty of condemning politicians and people in the media on similar opinion based conclusions.

What a completely stupid remark to make, Todds position was very similar in Belfast and that had sod all to do with family connections,he held that position because of his ability and led them to many trophies. Also the people who own the Devils are very intelligent business people, who are also very au fait with the game of hockey, these people have faith in Todd, thousands of Taffies have faith in Todd, we are where we are due to Todd. God you need a wake up call.

 

[E.D.S.]

Does it really matter why it happened Ben is gone, we wish him the best it’s history now, and we move on, well hopefully we do.

If we didn’t discuss things that have happened and gone on this wouldn’t be much of a forum.

 

[Devil94]

I'm pleased we have a GM that calls out this nonsense. In fact, I wish he would do it more often. Todd has every right to defend the club if rumours that are wrong as presented as fact.

 

[Sheincar]

If he'd wasn't vaccinated he put himself, his team mates and our club at risk. That is unacceptable.

Simms tweet: Listening to @markchapman on @5liveSport - just to advise him that the Elite Ice Hockey League has a rule that every player has to be double jabbed before a player can be registered.

 

[kingmo19.1]

What a completely stupid remark to make, Todds position was very similar in Belfast and that had sod all to do with family connections,he held that position because of his ability and led them to many trophies. Also the people who own the Devils are very intelligent business people, who are also very au fait with the game of hockey, these people have faith in Todd, thousands of Taffies have faith in Todd, we are where we are due to Todd. God you need a wake up call.

Don’t fall for responding to Mazzoak - your better than that.

 

[drainage]

What a completely stupid remark to make, Todds position was very similar in Belfast and that had sod all to do with family connections,he held that position because of his ability and led them to many trophies. Also the people who own the Devils are very intelligent business people, who are also very au fait with the game of hockey, these people have faith in Todd, thousands of Taffies have faith in Todd, we are where we are due to Todd. God you need a wake up call.

Couldn’t agree more Todd is as passionate as any fan about the team ……anyone who thinks differently is wrong IMO

 

[ASHIPP]

TK IS the Cardiff Devils. In charge at Belfast he was the envy of the League. Now fans and clubs around the League look to him as the gold standard for operations management in ice hockey. We are very, very lucky to have his skills and experience.

So just like he has the Club's back in these difficult times, let's cut him some slack for (apparently) 'offending some sensibilities by being direct' and be grateful we have such an experienced, passionate GM who, with his team, is trying to move the Club and our beloved sport forward in the UK.

 

[Wannabe2]

Don’t fall for responding to Mazzoak - your better than that.

Yes your absolutely right, he just wants a reaction and he got what he wanted. But not any longer from me as I have just put him on my ignore list.

 

[Earnie]

I think this topic subject has run its course.
Let the knowledgeable ones have a scrap over whatever.