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League Notes: Bettman, Peluso, Nassau Coliseum

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NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman, along with deputy commissioner Bill Daly and Toronto Maple Leafs GM Lou Lamoriello, have been subpoenaed to testify in a worker’s compensation case brought by former NHL enforcer Mike Peluso against the New Jersey Devils, Ottawa Senators, St. Louis Blues, and Calgary Flames, according to a report by TSN’s Rick Westhead. Peluso, now 51 years old, retired from the NHL in 1998 after a nine-year career in which he recorded nearly 2000 penalty minute and was known as a fearless fighter. However, five years ago, Peluso filed a worker’s compensation claim against several of of his former teams, alleging that they breached the duty of care owed to him by insufficiently advising him of health risks and withholding key medical records during his playing time. Peluso argues that, but for this negligence, the severe head trauma that has caused his permanent disability could have been prevented. Peluso suffers from frequent seizures, early onset dementia, and overall neurological impairment that leaves him unable to work. Peluso has previously clashed with Lamoriello, the former New Jersey GM when Peluso played, and the Devils in regards to gaining access to medical records, and now seeks to depose his former general manager as well. Additionally, Peluso has filed a lawsuit  against the Devils and Blues alleging battery, intentional and/or negligent infliction of emotional distress, fraud and misrepresentation in relation to their knowledge and alleged cover up of his brain trauma.

By being subpoenaed, Bettman, Daly, and Lamoriello are now scheduled to make depositions in early November as to the role of injury reporting in the NHL and, should they refuse to show up, could be legally compelled to do so. These depositions could play a major role in the ongoing concussion issues facing the NHL, if either of these three prominent and respected executives were to admit that teams did not share information with players in a proper manner. Peluso has already turned down a $325K settlement offer and is on record as saying “I want the world to hear Bettman and Lamoriello have to answer for what they have done… so many players have been abandoned by the NHL. When you can’t promote their game anymore, if you’re not a big name or a star, they toss you aside.” Peluso seems just as motivated to expose the league as he does to recover for his medical condition and this could be the beginning of a highly publicized and heated exchange. The concussion issue has publicly plagued the National Football League for years and could soon hit the NHL in such a way.

  • Bettman has yet to comment on his subpoena, but in fairness has been dealing with another league issue that has many upset. No, not the Olympics, but the future (and past) home of the New York Islanders. Bettman recently shut down rumors of a possible Isles’ return to the Nassau Coliseum, telling Newsday’s Jim Baumbach and Steve Zipay that he doesn’t see the location as a viable option. Bettman adds that the Islanders have not yet inquired with the league whether they would be allowed to return to Nassau County or not, but Bettman’s “gut reaction” was that it would not happen. Local legislators have been doing their part to try to woo the Isles back home, but have not gotten anywhere to this point. For now, the Islanders will continue to play at Brooklyn’s Barclay’s Center, which is poorly-suited for hockey, but can opt out of their 25-year-lease without issue if they do so prior to January 30th, 2018. There has been no word as to whether the Islanders are ready to make that commitment or not, but the Newsday article does mention that plans are moving forward for the Islanders to move on from both Barclay’s and Nassau, opting instead to build a new facility near Belmont Racetrack in Queens.

Snapshots: Eakin, Gusev, Kane

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The rumblings over who will be selected in tonight’s expansion draft are coming fast and furious, and though many are highly speculative Jim Toth of TSN 1290 is reporting that Cody Eakin will be the selection from the Dallas Stars. While it’s not clear who Toth’s sources are, Eakin would make sense as the Dallas selection. Not only did he show that he’s capable of putting up 35-40 points before this season but he’s only 26-years old and was drafted by new Vegas GM George McPhee back in Washington.

We projected Eakin as the selection out of Dallas in our mock expansion draft, mostly because of the lack of exciting options available among their exposed players. Eakin is coming off a disastrous season in which he scored just 12 points despite spending substantial time with the Stars’ big guns up front. His faceoffs improved and he could still be a valuable piece, but there is no guarantee he’ll ever get back to the highs earlier in his career.

  • Joe Smith of the Tampa Bay Times thinks that Nikita Gusev may be part of any trade with the Vegas Golden Knights to either protect young defensemen or move Jason Garrison’s hefty contract. Gusev was a linemate of Vadim Shipachyov last season in the KHL and has shown that he can be an incredible offensive performer despite his relatively small stature. The 24-year old still has one year remaining on his contract with SKA St. Petersburg, meaning it would just be a deal of negotiating rights to the Golden Knights. Gusev could also work out a mutual termination or buyout of his KHL contract and come to North America right away, though the interest in that option is unclear.
  • Darren Dreger of TSN gave us an update on Evander Kane trade talks amid all the expansion news, reporting that there are still ongoing discussions with teams in “win now” mode. While those teams aren’t clear, there is likely quite a bit of interest in the 28-goal man who may have turned a corner after his recent legal drama. Kane was by all accounts a much more consistent teammate this season, and showed it on the scoresheet with his best season since 2011-12. Amazingly still just 25-years old, Kane has one year left on his contract and could be among next summer’s top free agents with a repeat performance.

Snapshots: OHL Lawsuit, Sutter, Alzner

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In the second piece of legal hockey news today, an Ontario judge has certified the former players’ lawsuit against the OHL as class action. Rick Westhead of TSN provides the specifics on the news, explaining that it now makes every player who played in the OHL from 2012 to the present an automatic plaintiff in the lawsuit, though they can opt-out if they so choose.

The lawsuit could apparently cost the league as much as $30MM, something that according to the league would “bring on the even of destruction for the players.” Similar lawsuits are being brought before the courts for both the WHL and QMJHL, with the decision on whether the WHL case will be certified as class action coming down within the next month.

  • Darryl Sutter isn’t done just yet, as he told Gary Lawless of TSN. The former Los Angeles Kings coach who was fired earlier this month will be “picky” about his next situation, but won’t rule out heading to a re-building squad. Sutter has coached over 1200 games in the NHL and won two Stanley Cups, giving credence to the idea that he can be picky and wait for the perfect opportunity.
  • The Chicago Blackhawks have signed Nathan Noel to a three-year entry-level deal. Noel, 19, played this season for the Saint John’s Sea Dogs of the QMJHL, scoring 50 points in 52 games. Turning 20 in June, Noel will likely head to the AHL next season and try to continue his development for the Rockford IceHogs.
  • Karl Alzner won’t be available again tonight for the Washington Capitals, his fifth straight game out of the lineup with an upper-body injury. As Tom Gulitti of NHL.com writes, Alzner had skated in 599 consecutive games before missing game 3 against the Maple Leafs, and is an important part of the Capitals defense. Alzner is an unrestricted free agent this summer, and the Capitals will have a tough time affording him while also giving raises to their many RFAs, meaning this is likely his last run with the team for a while. Even though he may not get another chance to play in the postseason with the Capitals, he makes his team-first attitude clear: “I’d sit out the rest of the playoffs if we can win the Cup.”

Ovechkin Takes Hard Hit But Returns In Game 5

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Washington Capitals’ star winger Alex Ovechkin was upended in Game 5 of their series against Toronto by a Nazem Kadri hip check, who was called for tripping on the play. Ovechkin was escorted off the ice and could not put weight on his left leg. The hit can be viewed here, courtesy of NBC. He returned to the game for the second period.

Kadri attempted to lay a hip into Ovechkin as he carried the puck out of his defensive zone along the left board. Kadri succeeding in making contact with Ovechkin, but not before Ovechkin attempted to avoid the brunt of the impact by veering slightly right. The result was Ovechkin being twisted and flipped, in what looked to the officials in real time to be a knee-based trip. On the ensuing powerplay resulting from that penalty, the Capitals scored the opening goal. If the series hinges on such a call, the criticism from Toronto and Canada in general could be deafening. Notably, both Mike Milbury and Keith Jones called the hit legal during the intermission break for NBC.

Ovechkin, who is a notoriously tough, hard-nosed player, is no stranger to physicality. The winger has missed remarkably few  games over the course of his career – he only missed 4 contests in the last 3 seasons. His 33 goals in 2016-17 were his lowest total since 2013 – he had hit the 50-goal mark the previous three. However, coach Barry Trotz has consistently praised Ovechkin’s focus on defensive, all-around play this year, in hopes his change in style would lead to a championship run. Ovechkin has been one of the greatest playoff performers for a Washington team that has consistently struggled to find success in the post-season. His 44 goals in 88 games places him 16th all time in playoff goals per game, with the closest contemporary player on the list being Phil Kessel (at 20th). Considering his Capitals have never made it past the second-round during his career, this statistic is made even more impressive.

Ovechkin surprisingly returned to the game for the second period, in apparent game shape. His return was not anticipated by most analysts, and hockey fans everywhere exhaled a sigh of relief for the health of one of the game’s greatest players. His availability beyond this contest is unknown, but this is the time of year players will play through injuries.

Linesman Don Henderson Suing Dennis Wideman And Calgary Flames For $10.25MM

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Former NHL linesman Don Henderson is suing Calgary Flames forward Dennis Wideman for $10.25MM, reports CTV’s Chris Epp. The suit stems from the on-ice incident on January 27, 2016 where Wideman hit Henderson as Wideman was skating to the bench. The NHL initially suspended Wideman for 20 games before a neutral arbitrator reduced it to 10. Henderson also added the Calgary Flames as a defendant alleging that the team is vicariously liable for Wideman’s conduct.

Henderson’s suit—filed in Calgary, Alberta—alleges that as a result of Wideman’s hit, Henderson suffered numerous injuries including a concussion, neck injury, knee injury, and pain, numbness, and tingling in his right arm. The suit also alleges that those injuries directly impacted Henderson’s ability to continue to referee. Henderson seeks $10MM for lost income and future earnings, $200K for general damages, and $50K for special damages. It is unclear whether this is in Canadian or American funds.

Civil lawsuits stemming from professional sporting events are tricky to analyze. In contrast with normal civil suits alleging assault, battery, or negligence, professional sports participants face the added burden of disproving consent and assumption of risk. The basic premise is that a professional sports participant understands the risk of his or her position and consents to physical contact. It is why NHL players cannot sue each other for hits occurring during an NHL game.

That is not to say, however, that participants are prohibited from filing civil suits. Depending on the court, a party can successfully claim that the injury occurred was so out of the realm of what was expected that consent and assumption of risk do not apply. It is a tougher burden to prove, but it is not impossible.

According to Rick Westhead, Wideman has 30 days to file a statement of defense. So far both Wideman’s camp and the Calgary Flames have declined to comment.

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