In a recent episode of his podcast, Dropping The Gloves, former NHL forward John Scott stirred controversy by alleging that Corey Perry's contract termination with the Blackhawks resulted from a single mistake.
Scott claimed Perry had made an inappropriate advance towards an NBC staff member during a night in Columbus.
"Corey Perry was a model citizen in the NHL for, like, 18 years. He made a mistake in Columbus one night, he drank too much and he made a pass at a staff member who worked at NBC. And then Chicago, in the environment that they live in now, if there's any hint of anything like that, they just get rid of everything." Scott said about what Perry allegedly did.
A day later, Scott took to his X account to retract his statement, admitting it was false and unfounded. Perry, 38, faced contract termination from the Blackhawks in late-November and later disclosed his seeking professional help for substance abuse.
"On my podcast this week I made a false and misleading statement regarding former Blackhawk Corey Perry. It was an off-the-cuff remark that is completely unfounded and not true. It was a poor choice of words and I'll try to be more careful in the future."
After two months as a free agent, Perry signed a one-year contract with the Edmonton Oilers for the remainder of the 2023-24 season. While Scott's admission is commendable, the incident underscores the need for caution when making unverified claims in the public domain.
