Report: Penguins Accused of Hiring a Known Sexual Harasser

The Pittsburgh Penguins are all over the headlines on Tuesday and for all the wrong reasons. According to a report from TSN's Rick Westhead, the Penguins have been named in a lawsuit where the team is being accused of hiring a known serial sexual harasser.

The apparent serial sexual harasser is being accused of assaulting another coach's wife during a team road trip. The incident reportedly took place in 2018. The report gets into graphic details regarding Donatelli's actions, which you can find here.

According to the report, Skalde went to assistant GM, Bill Guerin months later with the information, and Guerin advised him to stay quiet with the allegations.

The Penguins are fighting the case saying Skalde didn't come forth quick enough. The team's lawyer had this to say in Westhead's report:

The team investigated and took immediate action in June 2019 when notified of the alleged incident, which Mr. Skalde reported seven months after it allegedly occurred.
Mr. Skalde continued to coach for the team [Wilkes-Barre/Scranton] for an additional year, when his contract was not renewed due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The allegations made against the team have no merit, and we have moved to dismiss the complaint.

There is still a ton to unfold here, but seeing notes that Guerin told him to keep it hush is obviously concerning. At this point it's still to hard to pass judgement but regardless, this isn't news you want to see about any organization.

Photo credit:  Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire