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Old 09-12-2018, 05:47 PM   #1
sureLoss
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Icon34 UPD: Austin Watson's suspension reduced from 27 games to 18 games for off-ice conduct

https://www.nhl.com/news/predators-a...?tid=280504338

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Nashville Predators' forward Austin Watson has been suspended for all preseason and the first 27 games of the 2018-19 regular season, without pay, for unacceptable off-ice conduct, the National Hockey League announced today.

NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman levied the suspension under Rule 18-A of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. The Commissioner's ruling came following an investigation by the League and an in-person hearing in New York on Friday, Sept. 7. The investigation and hearing were conducted, pursuant to the CBA, to determine the relevant facts and circumstances relating to a June 16, 2018, incident involving Austin Watson and his domestic partner. The incident ultimately resulted in Watson pleading no contest to a charge of domestic assault on July 24, 2018.

"I have determined that Nashville Player Austin Watson engaged in a physical confrontation with his domestic partner," NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said. "Today's ruling, while tailored to the specific facts of this case and the individuals involved, is necessary and consistent with the NHL's strongly held view that it cannot and will not tolerate this and similar types of conduct."

Last edited by sureLoss; 09-12-2018 at 05:51 PM.
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Old 09-12-2018, 05:54 PM   #2
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1/3rd of the season and about $333k. Can't really say that's undeserved.
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Old 09-12-2018, 05:54 PM   #3
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So the NHL did this investigation, not the police? Seems a bit odd. Domestic assault is an actual crime that police would charge him with, not just a violation of the NHL's off ice policies...
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Old 09-12-2018, 05:56 PM   #4
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The article says he was charged and plead no-contest.
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Old 09-12-2018, 05:57 PM   #5
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I'm assuming that the NHL did an investigation separate to the police, not that this was strictly an NHL investigation.
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Old 09-12-2018, 05:57 PM   #6
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Every organization does their own investigations for internal discipline purposes, which usually reference the criminal investigation.
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Old 09-12-2018, 05:59 PM   #7
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Yeah the NHL did their investigation after Watson plead no contest in court.

Also sets a standard for a suspension should Voynov be allowed to return. If Voynov is going to miss a similar amount of games it will reduce his trade value for the kings and lower leverage in contract talks.


edit: also wonder if Watson appeals. He has nothing to lose if he does and probably the NHLPA will want him to.

Last edited by sureLoss; 09-12-2018 at 06:03 PM.
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Old 09-12-2018, 06:08 PM   #8
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yup

https://twitter.com/user/status/1040029424496738304
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Old 09-12-2018, 06:22 PM   #9
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Come on PA. I know it's your job to defend players, but can't we just once call a spade a spade and not challenge a worthy suspension? Watson plead no contest. He earned that suspension with his actions. The NHL and the NHLPA should not have any time for women beaters.
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Old 09-12-2018, 06:34 PM   #10
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Originally Posted by Cali Panthers Fan View Post
Come on PA. I know it's your job to defend players, but can't we just once call a spade a spade and not challenge a worthy suspension? Watson plead no contest. He earned that suspension with his actions. The NHL and the NHLPA should not have any time for women beaters.
That's not how representation works. If you only represent the innocent, the whole system falls apart pretty fast.
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Old 09-12-2018, 07:43 PM   #11
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Arguably quite harsh.

Here's an example of a police officer that commits domestic assault and he only gets suspended 30 hours without pay, which is equivalent to 2 games for an NHL player (one week). https://edmontonjournal.com/news/loc...estic-violence

Not sure about the subjective merits of why an NHLer's punishment for domestic assault should be multiple times harsher than a police officer's...
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Old 09-12-2018, 07:44 PM   #12
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That's not how representation works. If you only represent the innocent, the whole system falls apart pretty fast.
They're not lawyers. It's a union. They are not required to go to bat for a woman beater.

Sorry, when people f*** up that badly, the union should say, "Listen, you have to take your punishment. We'll help you get back on your feet and provide you support in the meantime." Challenging a decision like this looks bad for the PA.
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Old 09-12-2018, 07:56 PM   #13
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They're not lawyers. It's a union. They are not required to go to bat for a woman beater.

Sorry, when people f*** up that badly, the union should say, "Listen, you have to take your punishment. We'll help you get back on your feet and provide you support in the meantime." Challenging a decision like this looks bad for the PA.
Are you sure? If a player files a grievance the PA may be obligated to appeal even if they don't support the player.
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Old 09-12-2018, 09:40 PM   #14
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Cheese and rice another mind numbing decision by the NHLPA.
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Old 09-12-2018, 09:57 PM   #15
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Originally Posted by GullFoss View Post
Arguably quite harsh.

Here's an example of a police officer that commits domestic assault and he only gets suspended 30 hours without pay, which is equivalent to 2 games for an NHL player (one week). https://edmontonjournal.com/news/loc...estic-violence

Not sure about the subjective merits of why an NHLer's punishment for domestic assault should be multiple times harsher than a police officer's...
In general I'm of the mind that the punishments should be quite harsh.
Why should it not be? Why should there be tolerance for this stuff?

You physically assault your partner there should be severe consequences.
I'm fine with that.
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Old 09-12-2018, 10:07 PM   #16
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Could be true that Watson ordered the appeal and PA was obligated. Still looks bad on PA that wants to hold favor in a lockout with the public.
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Old 09-13-2018, 03:07 AM   #17
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Originally Posted by Jiri Hrdina View Post
In general I'm of the mind that the punishments should be quite harsh.
Why should it not be? Why should there be tolerance for this stuff?

You physically assault your partner there should be severe consequences.
I'm fine with that.
Except it dosen't usually go both ways. .


Not condemning what happened as there seems to be no evidence she assuallted him ( based on this report alone) . We all know your statement is in good intent but rarely is it a 2 way street. Forget on a legal standing just in general theres a feeling theres no reason to hit a woman ..

It seems in this instance it seems deserved . Did she push him at all?? Did she push him and simply not leave as much as a mark? Probably not .

No you absolutely shouldn't assualt your partner . But he plead to no contest which means he admits no guilt or innocence. With out full details its hard to be that harsh on him.


Not saying what he did was right , just asking questions . Not alot of details on what happened......

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Old 09-13-2018, 05:08 AM   #18
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This is complete BS....the appeal I mean. The guy plead no contest, but if he was innocent he would have plead not guilty. The guy is now labeled as a woman beater, if he didn't do it I'd think he'd do everything in his power to avoid that.

Something like this happened to Varlamov didn't it? I thought he was accused and he fought it and was proven innocent.

The NHLPA is a joke, I was just talking about this with a friend; when a player breaks the rules and seriously injures another player and is then suspended, the PA fights it tooth and nail and represents the guilty player. Why don't they stand up for the player who gets hurt?

To me, this just looks bad. Watson did something extremely bad and is being punished for it. Like Cali said, the PA doesn't have to fight it. Watson shouldn't have his punishment reduced, that isn't helping anyone.
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Old 09-13-2018, 07:01 AM   #19
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while I agree there should be a penalty, I can understand why the player would ask the his union to appeal.
all the preseason and 27 games appears to be pretty harsh, especially compared to the low suspensions for despicable on ice actions.
just seems random and out of the blue the NHL would decide now it the time to drop the hammer on someone.
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Old 09-13-2018, 07:54 AM   #20
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The union has a legal obligation to represent the player. They can decide down the road not to take it to arbitration, but the timelines for filing greivances and keeping the process moving require immediate action.

If the PA told him to pound salt without considering all the facts they would face a lawsuit for failing to do their duty.

We don't know the grounds for the appeal, and thus really can't comment on it's validity. As a shop steward, I know that all dicipline should be fair and consistant throughout the organization, and that is usually one of the reasons we file greivances. Not because the employee didn't deserve to be punished, but because the punishment didn't fit the established norm.
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