Cataractes Imbeault suspended eight games for failed doping test

(Billy Hurst/AP)

BOUCHERVILLE, Que. — Shawinigan Cataractes forward Anthony Imbeault has been suspended eight games for a positive doping test.

The Canadian Hockey League, a grouping of the three major junior leagues, announced Friday that a urine test taken by the 17-year-old in March showed "traces of anabolic agents that figure on the list of forbidden products."

The left winger was handed an eight-game suspension for a first offence, which he will serve at the start of next season.

"The player co-operated really well throughout the whole process," Quebec Major Junior Hockey League president Gilles Courteau said in a statement. "After getting explanations and understanding his situation, we understood that he unconsciously ingested the illicit substance as he was trying to manage a weight problem caused in part by a dysfunctional thyroid gland.

"However, he should have consulted qualified professionals before consuming any of those products."

The five-foot-10 203-pound Imbeault had seven goals and 12 points in 26 games as a rookie for Shawinigan last season.

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