OHL coach Mantha banned

[Mel]

OHL suspends coach over hazing episode
Last updated Oct 18 2005 04:09 PM EDT
CBC News

The Ontario Hockey League handed the Windsor Spitfires' Moe Mantha a one-year suspension as general manager, and a 25-game suspension as coach, for a hazing incident involving several of his players.

OHL commissioner David Branch made the announcement Tuesday after wrapping up his two-week investigation that included discussions with club owner Steve Riolo, Mantha, two assistant coaches, two team trainers and 25 players.

Mantha received an additional 15-game suspension as coach for a fight involving players Akim Aliu and Steve Downie during a Sept. 28 team practice.

The Spitfires have also been fined $35,000 ? $25,000 for the hazing and $10,000 for the fight. The league maximum fine per incident is $25,000.

The alleged hazing incident occurred following a Sept. 9 preseason game, when the league claims rookie players were told to strip, and made to stand naked inside a small bathroom at the back of the team bus.

"I conclude that the lack of leadership and what transpired were dishonourable and prejudicial to the well-being of the league and its players," said Branch in a statement.

The OHL requires clubs to put up posters in every team locker-room stating that anyone involved in hazing, including those who don't report instances of it, will be suspended.

"The OHL has a zero-tolerance policy against hazing, our member teams know that, and that is why it is imperative that the league make a strong statement against it," said Branch.

"The league and its members are committed to providing an environment where each player joining the league is welcomed in a professional and dignified manner," Branch added.

The OHL will not reveal the identities of the players involved in the hazing incident, in order to protect their privacy.

Downie, a first-round pick of the Philadelphia Flyers, left the team after the fight in question, and demanded a trade.

http://toronto.cbc.ca/regional/servlet/View?filename=to-hazing20051018


I would just say that if you're a grown man who gets any kind of thrill whatsoever in having teenage boys strip naked... then do the rest of us a favor and STAY AWAY FROM YOUTH SPORTS!

I can't believe they're gonna let him resume control of the team. :curse:

[Max Power]

I would just say that if you're a grown man who gets any kind of thrill whatsoever in having teenage boys strip naked... then do the rest of us a favor and STAY AWAY FROM YOUTH SPORTS!

I can't believe they're gonna let him resume control of the team. :curse:

The story is that the coach had nothing to do with the hazing. It was all done by players but at the same time there's no way the coach didn't know what was going on. Severe penalty but somewhat justified if the OHL wants to put a stop to this BS. Same goes with the fight, the coaches should have interfered, they were standing right there, but rather the players had to stop it

[Mel]

The story is that the coach had nothing to do with the hazing. It was all done by players but at the same time there's no way the coach didn't know what was going on. Severe penalty but somewhat justified if the OHL wants to put a stop to this BS. Same goes with the fight, the coaches should have interfered, they were standing right there, but rather the players had to stop it

I misunderstood it then. I stand corrected.

[KB in Kelowna]

The incident happened on the TEAM bus, therefore the coach or staff members must have known what was happening. Personally I have and always have had a problem with the ritualistic humilation of an individual as part of a "bonding" or team building exercise. I have been through some and while I survived I frankly don't wish the expereince on anyone, especially a 16 year old away from home.

[Madferret]

Leafs' Tucker amused by hazing
CBC Sports

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Darcy Tucker finds pranks like hockey players stripping naked in the bathroom of a bus "amusing." Toronto's Darcy Tucker thought Moe Mantha's suspension was too severe. Tucker, 30, offered the lighter side of hazing when asked about the OHL's suspension of Windsor Spitfires general manager and head coach Moe Mantha.

Mantha was slapped with a season-long suspension (as GM) and 25 games (as head coach) following a league investigation into a hazing incident on the team bus. "I don't find the punishment fit the crime," said Tucker, who played junior hockey with the WHL Kamloops Blazers.

"Things happen at the back of the bus the coach never knows about. It just happens - it's part of being a rookie." In addition to Mantha's suspension, the Spitfires were fined $25,000 after four rookies were crammed into the bathroom on the team bus, told to strip and emerge naked following a pre-season game at London, Ont., on Sept. 9.

"There are some things that are off-limits, that's the way it should be," Tucker said. "Putting a few guys in the washroom, I find it actually quite amusing." The hazing later led to a fight at practice between Akim Aliu and Steve Downie, not to mention a further suspension and fine.

"There's a lot of veteran guys in the NHL laughing, right now," Tucker said. "Guys took their initiation and walked away from it at the end of the day. "It was kind of a laugh for all of us, It kind of brought us closer together. (But) if you take it as an embarrassment, it'll follow you for the rest of your career."

Maple Leafs rookie Kyle Wellwood, who played for the Spitfires from 2001-03, was dismayed by the incident. "It's definitely sad, especially being from that city," he said. "I still have ties to the Spits and I loved playing there.

"It's definitely a black eye. It's tough for anybody who played there." At the NHL level, hazing usually takes the form of a dinner in which rookie players pay for the entire team. "They even got out of hand, as far as people trying to run up the bill on these kids," Maple Leafs head coach Pat Quinn said.

"I guess hazing's been around since Plato's time, probably. I don't have the particular answer to it. "It doesn't seem to have anything to do with team-building, as far as I'm concerned. I did not personally (get hazed) because I was tougher than most of the guys."

Wayne Gretzky, for one, is definitely anti-hazing. "There's no room for it," said Gretzky, the NHL's all-time scoring leader and now rookie head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes. "It's the most ridiculous thing in sports. It's hard enough for a young guy to go into a locker room."

"We never had an initiation with the (Edmonton) Oilers," he continued. "Lee Fogolin was our captain - he didn't believe in it and, when I became captain, I kept that going. "It's just wrong. It's hard enough for a 16-year-old.

"As a captain, as a hockey team, I didn't like it and didn't allow it. There's no room for it."
*with files from CP Online

Good job Tucker. Stories like this never find their way onto SN & TSN.

[J.R.]

Toronto Maple Leafs forward Darcy Tucker finds pranks like hockey players stripping naked in the bathroom of a bus "amusing."What a creep!

:rolleyes:

[Amoroq]

Thread # 134879 the Leafs or a Leaf player is mentioned. :)


Great Job Fellas :thumb:

[a4l]

Tucker needs to keep his mouth shut the :curse: .

[Mel]

Mantha is considering legal action

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=2205232

[a4l]

Is the man insane???? If he sues then he should be fired for lack of reasonable insight. This man is in charge of young men who are, for the most part, living away from home. He may not be a legal guardian but he should look out for the welfare of his players the same as a parent would.

If he was a teacher and this was a school trip, just think of the flap that would ensue.

[Yoata]

Thread # 134879 the Leafs or a Leaf player is mentioned. :)


Great Job Fellas :thumb:

I'm sure it's not at all deserved in this case, or many others. :rolleyes:

Pucker proves once again what a classless thug he truly is.

[a4l]

I'm sure it's not at all deserved in this case, or many others. :rolleyes:

Pucker proves once again what a classless thug he truly is.

Can't disagree with that one. Yet another reason to detest Smucker