Swedish Hockey League goaltender Kasimir Kaskisuo has been suspended five games and fined 23,750 krona for throwing a water bottle at a referee. His fine equates to approximately $2,300 US dollars.
Kaskisuo’s team, Leksands IF, had blown a 2-0 lead over HV71. After giving up the third goal, the netminder took out his frustrations, throwing his water bottle and hitting the referee in the back.
The Leksands goaltender was given a match penalty and ejected from the game. Now, the Swedish Hockey League has tacked on supplemental discipline that’ll see him remain on the sidelines.
The league’s disciplinary committee called the action “fully deliberate and inappropriate, even if the act itself does not involve a high risk of injury.”
From the Disciplinary Committee’s Ruling:
All forms of improper body contact against a referee or other official must be punished with game misconduct on the ice (Rule 40.1) and reported to the disciplinary committee. The footage shows that Kasimir Kaskisuo picks up his water bottle after the final whistle and throws it at the referee, who is some distance away with his back to Kasimir Kaskisuo.
The bottle hits the referee’s head. Kaskisuo shall be punished for physical abuse of officials and shall lead to a suspension in accordance with the decision above. Kaskisuo must also pay a fine in the amount stated in the decision.
Kaskisuo is the backup goaltender for Leksands, posting a 3-9-0 record with a 3.30 GAA and a .880 save percentage. He will miss his club’s remaining three regular season games along with their first two playoff matches.
The goaltender provided an explanation to the disciplinary committee regarding the incident.
“After an obvious too many men on the ice and/or offside in the same situation, I let in a poor goal in an important loss, and my emotions and frustration took over,” Kaskisuo said. “As an athlete on the highest level, I should handle these things in another way. In this case I didn’t and for that I’m very sorry and feel embarrassed about it. I apologize to the referee, my teammates, the organization, and the fans.”
The Finnish netminder played two games in the NHL, one each for the Toronto Maple Leafs and Nashville Predators. Kaskisuo played college hockey in the US, suting up for Minnesota-Duluth before spending five seasons in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies and Chicago Wolves, and with the ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears.
No word on if he’ll cover the incident on his YouTube channel.
HV71 won the game 3-2. Referees for the match were Johan Nordlöf and J. Magnusson.
(stick-tap to Google translate; translations lightly edited for readability)
