Cross Traffic
Ryan.....Rick.....whatever....
LinkBack URL
About LinkBacks
Gary Bettman on the suspension:
"Prior to each season, all clubs and players are advised that under no circumstances are club personnel permitted to have physical contact with fans, or enter, or attempt to enter the stands," Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "We hold NHL players to a high standard, and there simply is no excuse for conduct of this nature. Fortunately, this incident is not typical of the way NHL players conduct themselves and is not typical of the way Mr. Rypien had conducted himself during his career."
As noted by Bettman here is what the teams and players were advised. On August 23, 2010, a memorandum was issued to all General Managers, Coaches and Players to serve as a reminder on discipline for the 2010-11 season. Following is an excerpt from the section that addressed "Contact with Fans":
"Under no circumstances are Club personnel -- either players or non-players -- permitted to have physical contact with fans, or enter, or attempt to enter the stands. Even where a fan is verbally abusive, intoxicated, or profane, Club personnel should either ignore the conduct or, where appropriate, seek the assistance of police or security personnel at the arena.
"Accordingly, please be on notice that all Club personnel (management, coaches, trainers, and/or players) who engage in any form of physical contact with fans, including the squirting of water, will, on a going forward basis, be subject to discipline in the form of a suspension. The Club involved will also be subject to a fine."
Mike Gillis' reaction:
"We understand and respect the League's decision today regarding Rick Rypien. While this game is played with passion and intensity, the safety of all of our fans and players is of the utmost importance at all times," said Canucks' GM Mike Gillis in a statement. "Throughout his career Rick has been well respected by his teammates, coaches, fellow players and our community. Rick is a valued member of our organization and we will continue to support him and all of his teammates to ensure incidents like this do not happen in the future."
http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=5...id=DL|NHL|home
*Taken from HF*
I know many of you will probably disagree with me based on the replies but I'll put my two cents in anyway.
- He didn't kill the guy.
- He didn't even punch the guy.
Yes... he grabbed the fan and that's a huge no-no, but nothing happened from it. Things got resolved pretty quickly. I'm sure Rick Rypien knows he's in the wrong here and won't ever do it again.
i agree with you.Originally Posted by TooCool
he never should've done it and i don't condone it. he's probably not a very bright guy and was acting in the heat of the moment. i'm sure the backlash and this suspension will make him think twice in the future. i definitely expected 5-10 games. not surprised with 6. i'm pretty sure it'd have been more if the guy he grabbed was injured or if it went further than it did. same as stuff on the ice. players get smaller penalties when the person they hit/slash/etc don't end up injured.
besides, again, not that i'm condoning it, but we also don't have rypien's side of the story. (how regretful he is, what enquist said to bother him, etc.) maybe campbell sympathized a bit with him? who knows.
I hear the people who are calling for his head and saying a season long ban and I wonder what they think about what happened in the past and became hockey lore, i.e. Millbury, the Rangers, Domi, etc. Would they want all those players banned from hockey?
I completely understand the sue-happy society we live in, and the black mark this gives hockey in the media, but, dammit, there's just something damn punk rock about what Rypien did. Not condoning it at all, he's a moron for doing it, but all that being said, c'mon, that's pretty metal right there.
Come to a hockey game and you just might get your a$$ handed to you. Old time hockey. Like Eddie Shore. I kinda like it.
Posting Permissions
Reply With Quote
Rinkrat 
