There’s plenty of buzz about the suspension of a popular Halifax Mooseheads player last week.
Zachary L’Heureux found himself in hot water after an alleged incident involving a fan in Quebec.
Experts say L’Heureux could find himself on the bench for a while.
Laurie Mackeigan has her own theory on what has become the hottest topic in Maritime hockey in the last few days.
“Clearly something happened before that. This isn’t the first interaction between these people,” said Mackeigan.
Mackeigan, a hockey mom herself, is commenting on the suspension of Mooseheads forward L’Heureux.
A video, widely shared on social media, shows a Mooseheads player apparently spearing a spectator with a stick while leaving the ice following a loss in Gatineau, Que.
Mackeigan isn’t especially surprised.
“I thought it was shocking but also not that surprising. I watch a lot of hockey for my sons high school’s games to the World Juniors, and in those games, there’s a lot of toxic behaviour,” she said.
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) issued an indefinite suspension for L’Heureux Friday over what the organization says was an incident involving a fan.
The team is not saying much.
In an email to CTV News, a team spokesperson said, “Out of respect for the process while the QMJHL determines a length of suspension, we will not have a comment at this time.”
Halifax Mooseheads former advisory board member, Alex Joseph, said actions like this are not tolerated in the sports industry, especially in hockey.
“The fans, they pay to get in but they don’t pay to make contact to a player, but once that happens, the players got to be cool and just go to the box,” he said.
Published reports say this is the Nashville Predators prospect’s ninth suspension.
Joseph said, depending on available evidence, this latest incident could keep L’Heureux off the ice for a significant time.
“If you’ve got a history in which unfortunately this player does have a lot of history of suspensions, they’re going to set precedent and that could be three, six or twelve. It’s tough where this goes but they are going to go tough on it.”
While it’s unknown exactly what sparked the incident, Mackeigan said both fans and players need to be held accountable.
“I think we have to call it out when we see it. I think too often people are quiet about it. We need more people in the stands controlling that behaviour. We need the referees and the coaches to be better.”
The QMJHL has yet to announce the length of suspension the player will receive. Updates could come as early as this week.
