Ex-NHL enforcer back in court to fix trial date

(Bill Janscha/AP)

KAMLOOPS, B.C. — A former NHL enforcer facing assault and driving charges in Kamloops, B.C., will be back in court next month.

Charges against Rudy Poeschek, who played parts of a dozen seasons with several teams, include driving while prohibited and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.


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He is scheduled to return to provincial court on Nov. 20 to fix a trial date.

The 47-year-old who is originally from Terrace, B.C., was charged following an alleged incident on July 5, the details of which have not yet been made public.

Poeschek played 364 games on various teams including the New York Rangers, Winnipeg Jets, Tampa Bay Lightning and St. Louis Blues, tallying six goals and 25 assists while racking up 817 penalty minutes.

Prior to his professional career, Poeschek played for the Kamloops Junior Oilers and Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League between 1983 and 1987.

He was selected 238th overall by the Rangers in the 12th round of the 1985 NHL entry draft. His professional career ended in 2001.

In 2005, A Florida judge sentenced Poeschek to 60 days behind bars after he drove across lawns in his Tampa neighbourhood with his five-year-old daughter in the car.

In the three years prior to that, he had been arrested eight times in Florida following a failed comeback attempt with the Lightning in 2002.

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