NHLPA issues a statement on Ian Cole's suspension and they reportedly aren't happy

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Josh tupper
October 16, 2022 (9:46)

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Last week an anonymous Twitter account released accusations that she'd been groomed and sexually assaulted by Ian Cole. In light of the accusations the Tampa Bay Lightning opted to immediately suspend Cole with pay. From the beginning Cole maintained that these accusations were fabricated lies.

Yesterday the NHL released their findings of the investigation. According to the league they were unable to substantiate any of the claims and the anonymous account refused to cooperate or come forward with the NHL. This ended the investigation into Cole and cleared him to return to the Lightning.

Now hours later the NHL Players Association released a statement of their own.

NHLPA STATEMENT REGARDING NHL INVESTIGATION:

We are pleased that the situation with lan Cole is now resolved and that the NHL has closed the matter. However, players should never be subject to suspension or discipline in response to unsubstantiated and anonymous accusations. Removing a player from his team under these circumstances is inappropriate and grossly unfair. We are engaging the League in discussions on how to address similar situations in the future.

While the NHLPA has a definite point, why did they not take this stance immediately? Why did they wait until after Cole was cleared?

If the NHLPA felt this way they should have immediately appealed Cole's suspension. Waiting until you know there is no evidence is a cowardly way to do business.