cascadesoccer
Well-Known Member
Patrice Cormier will not be returning to the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League this season.
The league has suspended the Rouyn-Noranda forward through the end of the playoffs following his violent hit on Remparts defenceman Mikael Tam.
QMJHL disciplinarian Raymond Bolduc took more than a week investigating the Jan. 17 incident and called the hit "dangerous and intolerable" while announcing Cormier's punishment.
Cormier has five days to appeal the suspension.
The video of his ugly hit has been replayed several times over the past week. On the play, Cormier came off his team's bench and caught Tam with an elbow in the neutral zone, sending the Quebec defenceman into convulsions.
The 18-year-old Tam spent two days in hospital with brain trauma and several damaged teeth.
Cormier was the captain of the Canadian world junior team and is known as a physical player. He hammered Sweden's Anton Rodin with a similar elbow to the face during an exhibition game ahead of the tournament in December.
The 19-year-old from Cap-Pele, N.B., was drafted by New Jersey in the second round in 2008 and signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Devils last summer.
Cormier is unable to play for the Devils or their AHL team until Rouyn-Noranda is eliminated from the playoffs. There was a chance he could surface in a lower-tier professional league, but New Jersey GM Lou Lamoriello closed the door on that option.
"We will honour the league's suspension, have not considered, and will not explore other avenues for his return this season," he said in a release. "We are pleased to hear Mikael Tam is doing well. Our thoughts are with him for a full recovery."
Lamoriello added that the Devils don't condone Cormier's actions but also defended his prospect.
"This unfortunate incident does not reflect the character of the Patrice Cormier we know," he said. "We trust that Patrice will have learned a valuable lesson that will serve him well when he returns to hockey as a valued player in our organization."
There have now been three long suspensions handed out in major junior hockey this season.
The Ontario Hockey League banned Erie Otters forward Michael Liambas for the season and playoffs after he hit Kitchener's Ben Fanelli from behind on Oct. 30.
And last week, the OHL gave Windsor Spitfires forward Zack Kassian a 20-game suspension for leaving his feet to hit Barrie's Matt Kennedy. (sportsnet.com)
It's good to hear that Cormier got the rest of the season, as much as I don't wanna see the captain of our WJHC team be suspended, I think he got what he deserved for the cheap shot on Tam. Im not sure if I would have gave him more or less but its not the first time he has done this, as he snuck an elbow to the face of the swedish player just over a month ago. I wonder what would have happened if he were in the NHL or if he wasn't the big name junior player he his.
The league has suspended the Rouyn-Noranda forward through the end of the playoffs following his violent hit on Remparts defenceman Mikael Tam.
QMJHL disciplinarian Raymond Bolduc took more than a week investigating the Jan. 17 incident and called the hit "dangerous and intolerable" while announcing Cormier's punishment.
Cormier has five days to appeal the suspension.
The video of his ugly hit has been replayed several times over the past week. On the play, Cormier came off his team's bench and caught Tam with an elbow in the neutral zone, sending the Quebec defenceman into convulsions.
The 18-year-old Tam spent two days in hospital with brain trauma and several damaged teeth.
Cormier was the captain of the Canadian world junior team and is known as a physical player. He hammered Sweden's Anton Rodin with a similar elbow to the face during an exhibition game ahead of the tournament in December.
The 19-year-old from Cap-Pele, N.B., was drafted by New Jersey in the second round in 2008 and signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Devils last summer.
Cormier is unable to play for the Devils or their AHL team until Rouyn-Noranda is eliminated from the playoffs. There was a chance he could surface in a lower-tier professional league, but New Jersey GM Lou Lamoriello closed the door on that option.
"We will honour the league's suspension, have not considered, and will not explore other avenues for his return this season," he said in a release. "We are pleased to hear Mikael Tam is doing well. Our thoughts are with him for a full recovery."
Lamoriello added that the Devils don't condone Cormier's actions but also defended his prospect.
"This unfortunate incident does not reflect the character of the Patrice Cormier we know," he said. "We trust that Patrice will have learned a valuable lesson that will serve him well when he returns to hockey as a valued player in our organization."
There have now been three long suspensions handed out in major junior hockey this season.
The Ontario Hockey League banned Erie Otters forward Michael Liambas for the season and playoffs after he hit Kitchener's Ben Fanelli from behind on Oct. 30.
And last week, the OHL gave Windsor Spitfires forward Zack Kassian a 20-game suspension for leaving his feet to hit Barrie's Matt Kennedy. (sportsnet.com)
It's good to hear that Cormier got the rest of the season, as much as I don't wanna see the captain of our WJHC team be suspended, I think he got what he deserved for the cheap shot on Tam. Im not sure if I would have gave him more or less but its not the first time he has done this, as he snuck an elbow to the face of the swedish player just over a month ago. I wonder what would have happened if he were in the NHL or if he wasn't the big name junior player he his.
