Washington Capitals terminates Brendan Leipsic’s contract

Washington Capitals have announced that Brendan Leipsic has been placed on unconditional waivers following offensive comments he made in a group chat on Instagram.

In an Instagram group chat that featured Leipsic, Jack Rodewald and others which showed inappropriate comments made about women including Lauren Kyle who is Connor McDavid‘s girlfriend and Meaghan, Tanner Pearson‘s wife.

His former teammates were among those Leipsic made derogatory comments about.

The NHL in a statement on Friday May 8, 2020, condemned the act calling such remarks misogynistic and reprehensible and his conduct inexcusable.

“The National Hockey League strongly condemns the misogynistic and reprehensible remarks made by players Brendan Leipsic and Jack Rodewald in a private group that has surfaced on social media,” the statement reads.

“There is no place in our league for such statements, attitude and behavior, no matter the forum. We will address this inexcusable conduct with the clubs and players involved,” the statement adds.

Responding to the conduct, the Washington Capitals disclosed on its Twitter handled that it has placed Brendan Leipsic on unconditional waiver.

“The Washington Capitals have placed Brendan Leipsic on unconditional waiver for purposes of terminating his contract,” the tweet reads.

Leipsic has however apologized earlier for his misconduct in a tweet on Wednesday saying he has realized how offensive his comments were and he would learn from his mistake. His apology though seems not to have any influence on the situation he has put himself in.

“Yesterday, my friend’s Instagram account was hacked and an individual circulated images that are representative of private conversations I was a part of.

“I fully recognize how inappropriate and offensive these comments are and sincerely apologize to everyone for my actions.

“I am committed to learning from this and becoming a better person by taking time to determine how to move forward in an accountable, meaningful way. I am truly sorry,” he said.

Leipsic may not be part of the team if the Capitals resume playing.

The 25-year-old in June signed a one-year contract worth $700,000 with the Capitals.
Leipsic during 2019-20 has three goals record and eight assists (11 points) in a positive-3 plus-minus in 61 games.