Beyond the disaster of the teams put on the ice, and I am using the word “team” very loosely in this case, Derek Prue has damaged people. Their business, their finances, their personal lives, everything has been on the table for destruction.
Team volunteers coming forward to comment on how they have been lied to and used. Players who have not received refunds they were promised. Business operators who have not been paid for goods and services provided. Billet families who have not been paid. Apartment providers who have not been paid. Players who have been racially abused.
The list goes on and on.
Derek Prue is for all intents and purposes a one-man wrecking ball when it comes to communities, and those who get sucked into believing the lies that flow from his mouth.
Fortunately, now, people are starting to act. Families who have not been provided refunds for tuition that was paid are now filing complaints with local police departments. It is called fraud if you sell something and then do not deliver what was promised. It is illegal to take money from a minor, or to have a minor sign a contract.
It is illegal to sell advertising or sponsorships and then not provide that advertising or sponsorship the way it was promised or contracted for.
Tumbler Ridge, under the control of Prue played its last game on November 26th. The next games on the GMHL schedule are in April of 2023.
Kitimat Saax last game under Prue was December 10, the next game is scheduled for January 6. Burns Lake has the same schedule.
Mackenzie Mountaineers last game was on November 25th and they are not scheduled to play again until January 20th of the new year.
Does any of that look like “junior hockey”? Does any of that look like “Junior A” hockey? If you answered “yes” to either question you need to get your eyes checked and head examined.
With coaches leaving, players leaving, billets quitting, and providers starting to refuse to service any of Prue’s teams, the GMHL West disaster is looking more and more likely to implode upon itself.
Players and parents are finally waking up to the fact that the GMHL West is not being scouted by anyone. They are also waking up to the fact that they wasted a lot of money believing a snake oil salesman. As more calls to authorities are made, one has to wonder what Prue is actually thinking.
The absence of GMHL West teams at the annual GMHL showcase in Ontario last week did not go unnoticed by players and parents. The lack of a playoff between the GMHL and GMHL West is also now a topic of discussion. People are now beginning to wonder what kind of deal Prue has made with the GMHL.
It looks more and more like Prue has a deal with the GMHL to do whatever he wants as long as he pays the GMHL their $45000 franchise fee.
The GMHL in Ontario can easily walk away from Prue at any time. And that is where this gets very interesting. Multiple sources in Ontario are now talking about how the GMHL may be losing patience with Prue and the attention he is bringing on all of them.
Eventually Prue’s lucky horseshoe is going to run out of luck. Someone, somewhere, at some time in the near future, either in law enforcement, within the GMHL, or a parent who is tired of being lied to will take Derek Prue to task. We would all have to believe that day is coming sooner rather than later.
