Rocky Wirtz obit

 

Blackhawks chairman Rocky Wirtz dies at 70

Wirtz, who died Tuesday in Evanston after a brief illness, made a dynasty out of the Hawks. His investment on and off the ice after taking over in 2007 led to three Stanley Cups and a tremendous surge in popularity. But the Hawks’ sexual assault scandal complicated his legacy.

He was not on the lists.

Rocky Wirtz, who won three Stanley Cup titles as owner of the Chicago Blackhawks and presided over the team during one of the NHL’s biggest scandals, has died. He was 70.

The Blackhawks said in a release that Wirtz died on Tuesday, calling it a “sudden passing.” No further details were provided.

“Our hearts are very heavy today,” Blackhawks CEO Danny Wirtz, Rocky’s son, said on Twitter. “Our dad was a passionate businessman committed to making Chicago a great place to live, work and visit, but his true love was for his family and close friends. ... His passing leaves a huge hole in the hearts of many and we will miss him terribly.”

Rocky Wirtz was 2 years old when his grandfather, Arthur Wirtz, purchased the Blackhawks in 1954. Rocky Wirtz took over the team after his father, William, died in September 2007.

William Wirtz was nicknamed “Dollar Bill” for his frugality when it came to acquiring the services of the game’s best players. And the team struggled, making only one playoff appearance from 1998-2008.

Everything changed when Rocky Wirtz became the team chairman. He helped re-establish the franchise’s connection to some of its best players from the past. He put the team’s games back on local TV, and the Blackhawks had a lengthy sellout streak that ended in 2021.

“The National Hockey League family is deeply saddened by the sudden passing of W. Rockwell ‘Rocky’ Wirtz,” NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a release. “Devoted to family and the Chicago Blackhawks, Rocky was a native son of Chicago and an accomplished businessman. Rocky took over control of the Blackhawks in 2007 and almost immediately restored the passion and following of this storied, Original Six franchise.”

With Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane leading the way, the Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup in 2010, 2013 and 2015. The team also made it to the 2014 Western Conference Final, losing to the Los Angeles Kings in seven games.

With the Blackhawks’ success on and off the ice, Wirtz became a beloved figure in his native Chicago. He also was lauded by the NHL for his leadership.

Jerry Reinsdorf, who owns the NBA’s Chicago Bulls and baseball’s White Sox, called Wirtz a great man.

“We were far more than partners at the United Center. We were very close; he was a dear friend and our trust, our bond, was unbreakable,” Reinsdorf said in a release. “We never had a disagreement or argument during all of our many years together.

“Everyone liked Rocky. He was smart, passionate, generous, personable and friendly. He cared deeply about the Blackhawks, the people who worked for the team and at the United Center, Blackhawks fans and the city of Chicago.”

However, Wirtz’s tenure as owner was forever tarnished by the organization’s response when a player said he was sexually assaulted by an assistant coach during the team’s run to the 2010 Stanley Cup title.

A review by an outside law firm, commissioned by the team in response to two lawsuits and released in October 2021, found that the franchise badly mishandled Kyle Beach’s allegations that he was assaulted by then-video coach Brad Aldrich.

The investigation by Jenner & Block found no evidence that either Rocky or Danny Wirtz was aware of the allegations before Beach’s lawsuit was brought to their attention ahead of its filing.

The Blackhawks reached a confidential settlement with Beach. Aldrich told investigators for the team’s report that his encounter with the player was consensual.

A second suit filed by a former high school student whom Aldrich was convicted of assaulting in Michigan was quietly dismissed “by stipulation or agreement.”

The NHL fined the Blackhawks $2 million for “the organization’s inadequate internal procedures and insufficient and untimely response,” and longtime general manager Stan Bowman resigned. Rocky Wirtz also successfully petitioned the Hockey Hall of Fame to have Aldrich’s name removed from the Stanley Cup.

At a town hall in February 2022, Wirtz angrily rejected any conversation connected to the franchise’s response to Beach’s allegations. Wirtz apologized for his remarks that same night.

Wirtz inherited the Blackhawks upon the death of his father, Bill Wirtz, in 2007, becoming only the fifth principal owner in the franchise's 81-year history. His grandfather, Arthur Wirtz, bought a stake in the Blackhawks in 1950, acquiring outright ownership in 1966 and selling a stake to Bill, who inherited full ownership upon Arthur's death in 1983.

Almost immediately after becoming the new owner, Wirtz altered many of his father's policies, which many fans saw as anachronistic. According to a source within the Hawks organization, Wirtz "believes in spending money to make money," in marked contrast to his father's frugal management style.

Wirtz stated in an interview that he would keep Dale Tallon as Blackhawks general manager and Denis Savard as head coach. He also affirmed at the time that Bob Pulford would remain as the team's senior vice president, but later reassigned him to Blackhawks liaison on NHL affairs. (Savard would be fired as head coach just four games into the 2008–09 season and replaced by Joel Quenneville.)

On October 22, 2007, Wirtz announced the team negotiated with Comcast SportsNet Chicago (now known as NBC Sports Chicago, of which he was part-owner) to televise home games. This was another break from his father's management style, where games were previously unavailable on television unless they were nationally televised. That season, they began to show seven home games, with Wirtz citing pre-existing agreements Comcast had with other programming as a reason why the remaining 2007–08 home schedule could not air locally. Wirtz hired former Chicago Cubs team president John McDonough, to become the new president of the team. Many believed that McDonough's presence, along with the young talent on the roster, would improve the team's marketing ability and reverse a long drought in popularity. This became evident when the team ranked 1st in the NHL for attendance in 2008–09 while making it to the Western Conference Finals. The team also hosted the Detroit Red Wings in the 2009 NHL Winter Classic at Wrigley Field that season.

Former star players Bobby Hull and Stan Mikita, who were not on good terms with the elder Wirtz, returned to the team in the role of "ambassadors". A big step showing this reconciliation was when the Blackhawks celebrated Hull and Mikita together at the United Center on March 7, 2008. While most of Wirtz's changes had positive results, one decision that was met with skepticism was lessening the use of the United Center's organ in favor of more prerecorded current music to attract new, younger fans. This ended up being a blessing in disguise as the team's new goal song, "Chelsea Dagger", became a song other teams loved to hate.

The Blackhawks did not take long to turn around under the younger Wirtz's stewardship. After missing the playoffs for six straight seasons (and seven of the last eight), the team enjoyed a resurgence in 2009. Having built the team around a core of Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews, Duncan Keith, and Brent Seabrook, the Blackhawks recorded their first 100-point season in 16 years. They defeated the Calgary Flames and the Vancouver Canucks in the first two rounds before bowing out to the defending Stanley Cup champion Red Wings in the Western Conference Final.

In the 2010 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Blackhawks defeated the Nashville Predators, Vancouver Canucks and San Jose Sharks to advance to their first Stanley Cup Final since 1992. They faced the Philadelphia Flyers in the Stanley Cup Final and won the Stanley Cup in six games on June 9, 2010. This was the first Stanley Cup for the Blackhawks since 1961, thus ending the second longest Stanley Cup drought in the history of the NHL.

In the 2013 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Blackhawks eliminated the Minnesota Wild, Detroit Red Wings, and 2012 Stanley Cup Champion Los Angeles Kings to reach the Finals. There they defeated the 2011 Stanley Cup Champion Boston Bruins in six games, giving the Blackhawks a second championship in four seasons. This marked the first game between Western and Eastern Conference teams all season due to the 2012–13 NHL lockout-shortened season. This also marked the first time since 1979 for an all Original Six Cup Final. Shortly after this championship, Wirtz and John McDonough, president and CEO of the Blackhawks, took out a full-page ad in the Boston Globe thanking the city of Boston for respect and sportsmanship during the Cup Finals and praising their recovery from the Boston Marathon bombing.

In the 2015 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Blackhawks eliminated the Nashville Predators, Minnesota Wild, and Anaheim Ducks to reach the Finals. There, they defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning in six games, giving the Blackhawks a third championship in six seasons. It also allowed them to win the Cup on home ice for the first time since 1934.

Prior to the 2021–22 NHL season, former prospect Kyle Beach alleged he was sexually assaulted by a member of the Blackhawks' coaching staff in 2010. The Blackhawks conducted an internal investigation. Multiple executives and coaches on the team, including Stan Bowman, Joel Quenneville, and Al MacIsaac were aware of Beach's allegations in 2010, but failed to properly report the issue to the police. The report also states that Wirtz was not aware of the allegations at the time. The Blackhawks and Beach ultimately reached an out-of-court settlement. On February 2, 2022, Wirtz became agitated and responded harshly when asked about the incident during a town hall session with fans and reporters. He later apologized for his remarks.

Wirtz died at a hospital in Evanston, Illinois, on July 25, 2023, at the age of 70.