NHL suspends Blackhawks player after alleged gay slur
CHICAGO --The NHL suspended Chicago Blackhawks forward Andrew Shaw for one game Wednesday for yelling an anti-gay slur from the penalty box and fined him $5,000 for an inappropriate gesture toward the officials during Chicago's Game 4 loss to the St. Louis Blues on Tuesday night.
Shaw will miss Game 5 in St. Louis on Thursday, and he will be required to undergo sensitivity training.
"While Mr. Shaw was apologetic and remorseful for both the offensive comments and the inappropriate gesture directed at the on-ice officials, he must be held accountable for his actions," NHL senior executive vice president of hockey operations Colin Campbell said in a statement, according to CBS Chicago station WBBM. "The emotion of the moment cannot and will not be a mitigating factor for the conduct that is expected of an NHL player."
The league's punishment came after Shaw apologized for his outburst the previous night.
Speaking quietly for a few minutes before the team left for St. Louis, Shaw said he couldn't sleep after the game and watching video of his outburst was difficult. It was video of the incident that went viral on social media, prompting sharp criticism and punishment from the NHL.
"I'll never use that word again, that's for sure.... That's not the type of guy I am," he said.
Shaw was sent off for interference at 17:56 of the third period, hurting Chicago's chance for a comeback in what ended up being a 4-3 loss. While sitting in the box, Shaw pounded on the glass with his stick and then yelled what looked like a slur toward someone on the ice.
No known audio exists of what he said in the noisy arena, but video of the incident quickly surfaced on social media and The You Can Play Project swiftly tweeted that it was aware of the incident and planned to contact the NHL.
Asked immediately afterward what happened, Shaw said he didn't remember.
However, a day later, Shaw released a statement through the Blackhawks apologizing for the incident.
"I am sincerely sorry for the insensitive remarks that I made last night while in the penalty box. When I got home and saw the video, it was evident that what I did was wrong, no matter the circumstances," Shaw said.
The Blackhawks also apologized and said they were "disappointed" in Shaw.
In a statement, the organization said: "We are proud to have an inclusive and respectful environment, and to support various initiatives such as the You Can Play Project and the Chicago Gay Hockey Association. We will use this opportunity to further educate our players and organization moving forward, so that we all may learn from it."