USA Hockey acted quickly to suspend a Texas high school player indefinitely after a violent stick attack on a defenseless opponent. The suspension is pending a hearing in January.
The assault took place during a high school club game between the Arlington/Midlothian Attack and the Grapevine/Colleyville Ice Hockey Association as part of the AT&T Metroplex High School Hockey League.
TSN’s Gino Reda reported that the victim of the attack somehow avoided injury.
Reggie Hall, president of the Texas Amateur Hockey Association (TAHA) issued a statement about the incident.
“The Texas Amateur Hockey Association and USA Hockey have worked diligently to make our sport safe and enjoyable for amateur hockey players of all ages. This collective effort has been instrumental in the record growth in our Affiliate over the past six years.”
“We are disturbed by the actions seen on the video from this weekend’s high school game and have taken immediate steps to suspend the offending player indefinitely pending a disciplinary hearing in January. These actions are not part of our game and have no place in our sport. Such acts are extremely rare and not representative of the players and families that participate in the thousands of games we oversee each and every season.”
Let’s hope that USA Hockey tosses the book at him. Repeatedly. When he’s down on the ice.