Penguins settle lawsuit with former AHL coach and his wife over sexual assault allegations

The Pittsburgh Penguins have resolved a prolonged legal battle involving a pair of former minor league coaches.

The team has settled a lawsuit with Jarrod Skalde, a former assistant coach with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League, and his wife Erin Skalde over accusations of sexual assault that occurred a few years prior.

As indicted in the report, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins head coach Clark Donatelli had molested Jarrod Skalde’s wife Erin during a team outing on a road trip back in 2018. She told her husband about the events, who then reported it to the organization. Donatelli proceeded to harass and threaten the two after they reported it to the front office.

The Penguins promptly fired Donatelli shortly after, but apparently Wild general manager Bill Guerin (who was GM of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins at the time) told the Skaldes to keep quiet about the reasons for Donatelli’s termination.

“The Penguins and Skaldes have agreed to resolve all claims,” said the Penguins in a statement.

“Through this resolution, the Penguins hope to bring closure to the Skaldes, provide some measure of peace and continue to encourage and promote a culture of openness, accountability and respect at all levels of professional sports.”