Statement regarding accusations of Andrew Sherman
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Statement from Tyler Shipstad, CEO
On January 15, during a routine warm-up game at a youth hockey practice, a player skated directly into Coach Andrew Sherman while Coach Sherman was looking in the opposite direction. Video evidence clearly shows that Coach Sherman did not see the player and that the player skated into his path, resulting in incidental contact.
After the collision, the player got up on his own and skated to the bench. Shortly thereafter, Coach Sherman checked on the player, personally walked him to the gym to be evaluated by a trainer, contacted the player’s parents, and followed up multiple times to make sure the player was okay. These actions are documented on video, despite claims reported by the media.
There was no slew foot. There was no intentional act.
Multiple former NHL referees, each with decades of experience officiating at the highest level of the sport, independently reviewed the full video and reached the same conclusion: this was incidental contact that does not meet the definition of a slew foot under any accepted hockey standard.
Incidental contact like this happens daily in youth hockey practices.
Despite these facts, false and misleading statements were made that intentionally misrepresented the incident in a police report and misrepresented the incident to SafeSport. These statements ignored the full video evidence and the fact that Coach Sherman was looking in the opposite direction when the player skated into him.
Following these false and misleading representations, Andrew Sherman — a youth hockey coach of over 25 years and a rink owner — was arrested and now faces a felony child abuse charge stemming from an accidental collision during practice.
This is a traumatic situation for Andrew, his wife, his children, and the athletes and families in our organization. The emotional damage caused by this escalation is real and ongoing.
To criminally charge a youth hockey coach with child abuse under these circumstances sets a terrifying precedent for youth sports across the country. If allowed to stand, routine, incidental contact could expose coaches to criminal prosecution, creating a chilling effect where adults hesitate to coach at all.
This should concern every coach, parent, and youth sports organization in America.
We are releasing the full video evidence so the public can judge the facts for themselves — not based on rumors, selective clips, or mischaracterizations.
We will continue to cooperate fully with all lawful processes while aggressively defending the truth, our staff, and our community.
Tyler Shipstad
Colorado Rampage CEO