Insider Emily Kaplan reports on exactly what happened in the Corey Perry situation

Veteran NHL forward Corey Perry was placed on waivers today with the Chicago Blackhawks announcing that if he clears waivers, he'll have his contract terminated by the club for "engaging in conduct that is unacceptable and in violation of... policies intended to promote professional and safe work environments."

From the team:

BIG YIKES.

It's clear that Perry messed up LARGE. No details yet on what exactly transpired, though.What we do know is that last week Perry left the Blackhawks due to what the team is calling an 'organizational decision'.

Today GM Kyle Davidson met with the media and stated that Perry's contract termination has nothing to do with rumors concerning Perry and Connor Bedard's mother Melanie Bedard.

Check it out:

In case you're late to the party, earlier this week on social media sites like Reddit and Twitter there was a hot rumor making the rounds that Perry actually hooked up with Melanie Bedard, mother of Blackhawks superstar rookie Connor Bedard.

Some hot takes from Twitter:

While GM Davidson addressed the rumor in his press conference, it was NHL insider Frank Seravalli who squashed the rumor earlier in the day calling it, "fucking bullshit."

From Seravalli:

"The stuff that's been floating around about Corey Perry and one of his teammates' mothers is fucking bullshit. And I think it's ridiculous that this is something that was perpetuated on social media. It is so far from the truth and so unfair."

"Connor Bedard... he was raised right. His parents are really polite, proper people. There's zero chance that something like this would happen and yet it will stick with him for a long time."

- Frank Seravalli

Together with today's report from GM Davidson should prove pretty conclusively that nothing happened between Perry and Melanie Bedard. So... what DID happen?

Well, like Davidson himself says, this was a professional matter, not a criminal matter and it occurred sometime last week. In her latest report for ESPN, insider Emily Kaplan gets to the bottom of things, reporting on allegations against Perry from a Blackhawks' employee.

From Kaplan via ESPN's Ryan S. Clark:

A source told ESPN's Emily Kaplan that Perry indeed traveled with the team to Columbus last Tuesday, a day before the game, and an incident occurred that day involving a team employee. Davidson said Perry, who did not play in the team's 7-3 loss, was "immediately pulled" from the game once the Blackhawks were notified, and at that point, the club began an investigation.

- Ryan S. Clark

So... something happened between Perry and a Blackhawks' employee in Columbus on Tuesday, November 21st. As for what transpired, we can only speculate. But we now know that this had nothing to do with any other members of the Blackhawks and certainly not with any of their family members.