After making his enraged debut as a NHL coach Wednesday night, Colorado Avalanche bench boss Patrick Roy has been fined $10,000 by the league for his actions.
He will not, however, face a suspension:
“Roy’s actions at the conclusion of the game were irresponsible,” said NHL senior executive vice president of hockey operations Colin Campbell in a statement. “One of the responsibilities of an NHL coach is to help diffuse volatile situations on the bench.”
Roy told the Denver Post that he was informed of the fine by Campbell.
“This is the league policy and I understand it now, but at the same time I will always defend my players. Things happen. This is the way I dealt with this one. Would I deal with it differently next time? Maybe, maybe not. I don’t know,” Roy told the Post after the Avalanche practised Thursday.
Shortly after the horn sounded on the Avalanche’s 6-1 victory over the Anaheim Ducks in Denver, an irate Roy screamed at the Ducks through the glass partition separating the two benches.
Still worked up, he shoved the glass with both hands not once but twice, causing it to tip forward.
For his outburst, Roy received a game misconduct — and cheers from the fans, who hope the Hall of Fame goalie can lead this downtrodden franchise back to prominence, much like he did years ago when he helped the Avs to two Stanley Cup titles.
Roy’s rage didn’t exactly make him any friends with the Ducks.
He hollered at opposing players and then yelled at Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau, who yapped right back. That’s when Roy pushed on the glass until it tilted, surprising Boudreau.
“(He’s) going to be in for a long year, if he’s going to yell at every player and yell at the refs at every stoppage of play,” Boudreau said. “It’s not the way the game is played.”
Roy was sticking up for his players, agitated over an apparent tripping infraction against top draft pick Nathan MacKinnon that wasn’t called.
“What Boudreau said was all lies,” Roy said Thursday. “I don’t talk to players; I respect all the players. I’m certainly not going to get too involved in this one, but when you talk about classless — when you’re lying, this is classless.”
(with files from AP)
