The NHL and the NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced today that Calgary Flames forward Blake Coleman was fined $5,000.00, the maximum allowable under the CBA, for slew-footing Winnipeg Jets forward Pierre-Luc Dubois in last night’s game. That money will go to the Players Emergency Assistance Fund.
The incident occurred at 18:30 of the first period, as Coleman and Dubois skated together through the slot area. The two appeared to be tangled up, both falling and crashing into an unoccupied net. Upon a closer look, Coleman appeared to slew-foot Dubois. Both players were assessed a minor penalty on the play, Coleman for tripping and Dubois for holding.
Luckily for both team and player, Coleman was able to avoid suspension and simply earned the fine. However, this fine will go into his record and could be considered in future disciplinary cases, if any. Worth noting, Coleman has been suspended once before. That incident came back in October of last season, when the veteran was banned one preseason game and one regular season game for boarding Jets forward Jansen Harkins.
Are we really supposed to believe that all of that five thousand bucks goes to the fund? No sticky fingers get a hold of it in between?
I believe it. I believe the money is accounted for as it comes in and as it goes out. I believe that the board of the Players Emergency Assistance Fund tracks this money. And I believe that the books are periodically reviewed by a third party auditor. This isn’t Soccer, it’s Hockey.
What’s up with Coleman and the Jets? Why does he seem to get into trouble every time he plays against them?