Viral London Hockey Brawl “Unacceptable”

Hockey fights have always caught the attention of hockey fans. Line brawls draw a few extra sets of eyeballs.

This past week, we learned a line brawl that involves a punch from a linesman and a running tackle from a trainer in running shoes creates a viral sensation. Although, the attention may be a positive in terms of awareness for the Greater Metro Junior ‘A’ Hockey League (GMHL), the league has made it clear this incident is NOT to be condoned.

The event in question actually occured on November 20th, 2015, in London in a game between the London Lakers and Kingsville Kings, two teams known to have a heated rivalry.

Chatham-Kent has its own connection to the web gem. Ian Kennedy of Louisville, a high school teacher at Chatham-Kent Secondary School, is the Director of Player Personnel and Scouting for the Lakers.

Kennedy says media attention brought the video to the forefront, with attention growing exponentially over 48 hours. The GMHL initially asked the teams to send their video directly to the league and not to post the footage online. That would explain the near two-month span between the incident and it’s online phenomenon.

“Local media representatives initially posted the video,” said Kennedy. “From there it went to TSN and beyond, to every corner of the earth including Melbounre, Austraila, where the clip was seen on the nightly news.”

Much like a message sent by the GMHL this week, Kennedy told 99.1 CKXS in Wallaceburg there is no room for anything like this in hockey.

“Whenever London and Kingsville play, it’s a pretty heated rivalry. Tensions were already running high in that game, some liberties were taken and a fight broke out. What happened from there (a linesman punching a player and a trainer responding by running out on the ice and tackling the official) was completely unacceptable and inappropriate. It really doesn’t belong in hockey at all. It’s not a part of the game. The game is played between the whistles. Things like this that don’t involve the game, the score or the people that should have an impact on the outcome of the game, is really frustrating to see. The league has taken steps to ensure this doesn’t happen again.”

The official and trainer in question were both suspended “indefinitely”. Those within the GMHL believe the linesman’s indefinite suspension will be a life-time ban. The trainer has since resigned from the club.

The GMHL is a relatively new league, with no ties to Hockey Canada. Classified as a Junior ‘A’ league, opinions vary on the calibre of play. Many players move on to NCAA Division III hockey as well as semi-pro leagues in Europe and minor-pro leagues throughout North America.

The official GMHL statement on the November 20th incident can be seen here:

GMHLIn light of the media attention towards the event which took place eight weeks ago on November 20th, 2015, in London, Ontario with 1:35 remaining in the 2nd period, the GMHL has prepared the following release in response.

Immediately following the incident, a video clip was reviewed by the GMHL Commissioner who communicated the incident to the GMHL Director of Officiating. During the third period of the match, the two reviewed the video clip. By the conclusion of the game, GMHL Director of Officiating suspended the contract of the linesmen in question, removing him from the active officials roster due to a breach in the contracted Official’s Code of Conduct which states: “game officials agree to conduct themselves in a professional manner at all times, representing the league’s public image in a positive light; this would include during operations, communicating with peers, supervisors, managers, and league authorities.”

The following morning, the Commissioner and the Directors of Officiating launched an investigation including the league executive, referee committee and discipline committee. The investigation concluded on January 16th, 2016. The official and the trainer in question have not participated in GMHL operations since the evening of November 20th.

The content of the investigation and private matters regarding the official and trainer personal files will not be made public for their own privacy. However, the governing body of the league’s sanction, referee committee, and its managers have taken appropriate and professional measures to conclude such investigation.

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