(file photo/CKOM News Staff)

By CKOM News Staff

Hockey Saskatchewan dismisses reports of second Hockey Canada ‘slush’ fund

Oct 5, 2022 | 12:55 PM

Hockey Saskatchewan says reports of Hockey Canada having an alleged second secret “slush” fund to help cover up allegations of sexual assault aren’t accurate.

In a letter sent to parents and its minor hockey associations, Hockey Saskatchewan says the so-called Participants Legacy Trust Fund is not a fund of Hockey Canada, but is rather for the 13 members of Hockey Canada.

According to Hockey Saskatchewan, the fund was created and used from September 1986 to August 1995 because Hockey Canada could not obtain an insurance provider and was essentially forced to be “self-insured.”

“Fees collected from participants registered with members (approximately $18 per participant at that time) were placed into the National Equity Fund and used to cover expenses for lawsuits primarily in the areas of injury lawsuits (example: people who experienced paraplegic or quadriplegic injuries; spectators being hit and injured by pucks, etc.),” the letter read.

“On June 1, 1999, approximately $7.1 million was transferred from the Hockey Canada National Equity Fund into a formal Legacy Trust Fund (‘Trust’). The Trust belongs to the original contributors of the self-insured period, based on their level of contributions.

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“This Legacy Trust fund continues to exist today and provides annual funding to Members of Hockey Canada and the CHL by way of realized annual investment income. The income is distributed to Members and the CHL based on the percentage they originally contributed into the Trust.”

The letter said that since 2007, $5.4 million has been paid out of the trust to Hockey Canada members and the CHL.

While Hockey Saskatchewan says the fund is only used to deal with injuries sustained from 1986 to 1995 and to help teams in need, the Globe and Mail reported earlier this week that documents obtained from Hockey Canada said money in the reserve was earmarked “for matters including but not limited to sexual abuse.”

Hockey Saskatchewan said it collected the following amounts for the past five years from the interest earned on the Participants Legacy Trust Fund:

• 2022: $35,383
• 2021: $44,237
• 2020: $47,540
• 2019: $50,438
• 2018: $66,990

“This revenue assists Hockey Saskatchewan to maintain the current fees charged to participants in the province,” the letter read.

The letter added the trust fund acts as “a backstop” to the National Equity Fund, and offers Hockey Canada members protection against any liability claims arising from any incidents that occurred between September 1986 and August 1995.

“Should the National Equity Fund be insufficient to service such claims, the Trust would be required to fund them through a ‘tail coverage agreement,’ ” the letter said. “This trust belongs to the beneficiaries of the Trust … and as such does not appear on Hockey Canada’s financials.

“The Member Branches of Hockey Canada endorsed the continuation of the Participation Legacy Trust fund within the past three years to serve as ‘tail coverage’ in the event any type of lawsuit is launched against a Member Branch from the period Hockey Canada was ‘self-insured.’

“Therefore the Participants Legacy Trust Fund provides annual revenue to Hockey Saskatchewan while at the same time providing coverage in the event of a lawsuit having to be paid out from that time period which may result in fees having to be increased for the current members.”

It has been just over 24 hours since the letter was sent to parents on behalf of Hockey Saskatchewan. Since then, Hockey Quebec has announced it will be suspending all transfers of the registration fees it normally pays to Hockey Canada.

980 CJME reached out to Hockey Saskatchewan for comment on whether it also would consider suspending the transfer of registration fees to Hockey Canada, but the provincial organization declined to comment. It also declined to say if the matter would be raised at a future meeting.