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UHL player banned for life

Associated Press

2/25/2005

DANBURY, Conn. (AP) - A United Hockey League player was kicked out of the league permanently on Friday and three others were suspended after a fight-filled game in which one player grabbed a coach on the opposing bench.

Chad Wagner of the Danbury Trashers was banned from the league, and defenceman Dave MacIsaac was suspended for the rest of the season and the playoffs. Forward Gerry Hickey was suspended for 10 games, and forward Jon Mirasty for five games. Trashers coach Todd Stirling, the son of New York Islanders coach Steve Stirling, will sit out three games.

During the first period of Wednesday's game with the Adirondack Frostbite in Danbury, Wagner was being escorted to the penalty box but broke free and skated toward the Adirondack bench, where officials said he grabbed coach Marc Potvin.

Hickey and Mirasty left the penalty box and skated toward the Adirondack bench, officials said.

MacIsaac was suspended for punching an Adirondack player, breaking his nose, officials said.

''The actions of Mr. Wagner and Mr. MacIsaac are unacceptable,'' said Richard Brosal, UHL president and chief executive officer. ''The safety and welfare of our players is primary. I will not allow that to be compromised.''

This was the second major fight involving the Trashers this season.

Team owner James Galante was charged with assault after allegedly punching linesman James Harper after a game in December.
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Wow crazy story here... the coach is even nuts. . . Interesting to point out that Gerry Hickey was a team mate of current Falcon Chris Pedota with the Cedar Rapids Rough Riders of the USHL. Hickey was actually a pretty talented player, now he is appearantly just a UHL Goon.

It is a GOOD thing "Potter" didn't have skates on, because the kid would have been in serious trouble!!!!!

Dayons_Den wrote:. Interesting to point out that Gerry Hickey was a team mate of current Falcon Chris Pedota with the Cedar Rapids Rough Riders of the USHL. Hickey was actually a pretty talented player, now he is appearantly just a UHL Goon.

If Pedota doesn't get his play back up, it looks like he is headed for nothing but the UHL Goon squad.

The last UHL game I saw was the Mohawk Valley Prowlers versus the Winston-Salem Ice Cats in the Utica (N.Y.) Memorial Auditorium.

It was Clinton Comets night. Clinton is a suburb of Utica, and the Comets were a long time member of the ECHL, the league that inspired Slap Shot. (In fact, part of the movie -- including one of the opening fight scenes against the team from Syracuse where they drop the gloves right after the national anthem, was shot at the Utica Aud).

Since it was Comets night, they apparently decided it would also be old time hockey night. And it didn't help that the Winston-Salem team had ditched Utica for North Carolin a couple years before.

By the end, three goalies had received game suspensions. For the last three minutes, the Prowlers had to find pads that would fit a skater. Winston-Salem got two quick goals at the end, but the Utica team held on and won by a goal.