NHL Acts Swiftly and Hands McSorley the Longest Hockey Suspension in History as Baseball Prepares to Take Action Against Strawberry That Could Cost Him the Season

Responding swiftly and decisively to an incident that has spawned big headlines and bigger headaches, the NHL on Wednesday suspended Boston Bruin defenseman Marty McSorley for his team’s remaining 23 regular-season games and the playoffs, the longest suspension in league history for an on-ice offense. The NHL also reserved the right to extend the sentence should McSorley sign a new contract after his current agreement expires this summer.

McSorley had been suspended indefinitely for using his stick to strike Vancouver Canuck winger Donald Brashear on the right temple with a two-handed blow Monday. Brashear fell backward to the ice and struck his head, resulting in a concussion. He must avoid physical activity for three weeks.

“This sends the message you can’t do this. You can’t strike another player with your stick. If you do, the repercussions will be severe,” said Colin Campbell, the NHL’s director of hockey operations and a former player and coach. “I guess the difference in this case is the actual blow, the unsuspecting blow from behind with the stick to a part of the head we all fear--the temple. . . .

“Are we breaking new ground? Sure, when it comes to the number of games. But have you seen anything like that? I haven’t.”

The suspension is two games longer than the punishment levied against the Washington Capitals’ Dale Hunter for a blindside hit on New York Islander center Pierre Turgeon during the 1993 playoffs. McSorley, a seven-time offender who has not been sanctioned since 1994, will forfeit $72,000 of his $600,000 salary to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund. The Bruins are six points out of an Eastern Conference playoff spot after Wednesday’s 4-2 loss at Edmonton.

Because he may face criminal assault charges, McSorley took the advice of counsel and did not attend a hearing Wednesday in New York before Campbell and William Daly, the NHL’s chief legal counsel. He had requested a postponement, but NHL officials said a delay would not have served Brashear’s best interests or those of the league.

Daly said he spoke with Vancouver police officials and intends to cooperate with their investigation. McSorley could face a maximum of 14 years in jail if convicted of aggravated assault, but Daly said he hopes law enforcement agencies will let the NHL police itself.

Daly also said the suspension was open-ended because the league wants to hear McSorley’s version of the incident. McSorley apologized to Brashear, the Bruins and hockey fans Monday night but has not commented publicly since.

His remorse was not enough to prevent Campbell from ending his season and, perhaps, his 17-year career.

McSorley, 36, is the third-most penalized player in NHL history. He was Wayne Gretzky’s bodyguard on two Stanley Cup-winning teams in Edmonton before accompanying Gretzky to Los Angeles in the landmark 1988 trade between the Oilers and Kings. Before this, he was perhaps best known for being caught with an illegal stick during Game 2 of the 1993 Stanley Cup finals, giving the Montreal Canadiens a power play that helped them tie the score and the series and defeat the Kings in five games.

“He’s a player who came into the league and made it strictly on his toughness and became a pretty good hockey player,” Campbell said. “. . . It’s unfortunate this incident will probably be his legacy.”

Mighty Duck left wing Stu Grimson, who has been a feared enforcer for 12 seasons, said he felt sorry for Brashear and empathized with McSorley but condemned the hit.

“It was as brutal an act as I’ve ever seen playing the sport of hockey,” said Grimson, who has been suspended twice by the NHL, for three games, and fined once. “I’ve seen in the past where he wanted to get back at someone. I’ve been in the position where he wanted to get back at me. But I’ve never seen him do anything like what he did.”

After Grimson saw the incident, he was curious about the circumstances. He guessed McSorley was frustrated after being pummeled by Brashear in a fight earlier in the game, at having Brashear refuse to fight him again and at seeing Brashear fall into Boston goalie Byron Dafoe.

“The thing that people often overlook with players who play a physical role is we’re big people, we’re people that can handle ourselves, and we’re placed in positions--and willingly--where we’re asked to make snap decisions in very high-profile positions,” Grimson said. “We’re left to our passions, our desires, and often adrenaline is firing at a very rapid rate when we’re asked to make these decisions and a lot of times we cross the line.

“I’m by no means an innocent party where things like that are concerned. Often times, the next day I’ve been left with maybe not the feeling Marty has today, but certainly, ‘I wish I hadn’t done that.’ You have to make a judgment call and a lot of times you’re making it on your team’s behalf. You’re coming to the aid of a teammate and you do something that’s excessive and you live to regret it later. . . .”

Duck left wing Paul Kariya, who sat out the last 28 games of the 1997-98 season and the Olympics after a cross-check from Gary Suter gave him his fourth concussion, also decried McSorley’s hit.

“Any incident, especially something that happens to your head, you have to be punished severely and you have to continue to do that,” Kariya said. “Maybe they have to raise the bar until [an offender] is out of the game.”

Campbell, who saw the hit on TV, weighed many factors in deciding the punishment. He reviewed Brashear’s collision with Dafoe--which he determined was accidental--considered McSorley’s reputation, the severity of Brashear’s injury and the testimony of Boston General Manager Harry Sinden and Vancouver GM Brian Burke.

Kariya lamented the blot on the image of the league.

“When a play like that happens, it’s front page in every paper, whereas all the great plays that happen during the year aren’t,” he said. “The fan who maybe doesn’t see the game a lot, that’s what they’re going to focus on. . . .

“We want the speed and skill to be showcased, not the violent actions.”

Campbell said actions like McSorley’s are rare--but one is too many.

“This is not what hockey is all about,” he said. “We can’t undo this, and hopefully people understand this.”

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McSorley’s Suspensions

* Three playoff games--Spearing, April 23, 1988

* Four games--game-misconduct penalties, 1989-90

* Three games--striking another player with gloved hand, March 2, 1991

* Six off-days and $500 fine--Cross-checking, Oct. 31, 1992

* One game--Game-misconduct penalties, Nov. 27, 1992

* Four games and $500 fine--Eye gouging, Feb. 23, 1994

* 23 games plus playoffs--Slashing, Feb. 23, 2000