The person behind Jeff Marek's Sportsnet firing finally revealed

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Daniel Lucente
August 28, 2024 (4:03 PM)

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Former Barrie Colts Director of Scouting Mark Seidel appears to be one of the people involved in the Jeff Marek scandal that got him fired in Las Vegas.

Mark Seidel has left Las Vegas, but the chaos he caused is still making waves. Seidel, who used to work as the Barrie Colts' scouting and player personnel director before he was just recently fired, has been linked to longtime broadcaster Jeff Marek's recent departure from Sportsnet, according to a report by The Athletic.

While Mark Seidel didn't go into detail about his interaction with Jeff Marek, he did try to shed some light on his deep involvement in junior hockey and scouting. He reached out to BarrieToday to explain his side of things.

Over the years, Mark Seidel has worked for several Ontario Hockey League (OHL) teams, as well as with media outlets, and also ran his own scouting service, which is called the North American Central Scouting.

With rumors swirling about his actions in Vegas and other roles, Mark Seidel offered a somewhat basic account of events. He spoke briefly about his frequent job changes and his struggle with addiction before eventually finding some stability with the Barrie Colts.

In an email, Seidel pointed out that he has good relationships with certain people in the hockey industry, even though some of them gave BarrieToday a different version of his story. Despite Mark Seidel's pushback, this isn't the first time his behavior in Vegas has caught the NHL's attention.

For example, he briefly worked as a scout for the Minnesota Wild but was let go after other scouts raised concerns about his lack of attendance at games, which he did admit to BarrieToday. He said his addiction issues, which started with OxyContin after knee surgeries, were to blame, but he's been clean for over a decade now.

Mark Seidel has also received a cease-and-desist letter from the NHL for ranking draft prospects, which he still continues to do on his X account.

An article written by Katie Strang and Dan Robson of The Athletic suggests that Jeff Marek's exit from Sportsnet was tied to him allegedly sharing confidential draft information with Mark Seidel, who then leaked it on social media before it was officially released.

Mark Seidel's social media activity caught the attention of both the NHL and Nevada gaming regulators, leading to an investigation into whether he was giving information to illegal betting groups in an attempt to help them make money, which they would then in turn pass on to him as well.

No doubt this recent firing by the Barrie Colts is sure to raise a ton of eyebrows once again around this whole situation.