Daigneault’s Suspension Puts Ducks Back at Square One

Only two games after patching their defense by trading for veteran J.J. Daigneault, the Mighty Ducks are back where they started after Daigneault was suspended 10 games by the NHL Wednesday for “abuse of an official” when he hit referee Don Koharski with his stick Sunday against Vancouver.

“It’s just very disappointing for me. I just got here and I wanted to help the team so much and contribute,” Daigneault said. “I don’t think I had any intent to strike the official. . . . There wasn’t any motive for me to go after the ref.”

The length of the suspension--the result of an NHL rule that calls for an automatic 10 games if a player “deliberately applies physical force to an official. . . . without intent to injure”--is a blow to the Ducks, fighting for a playoff spot with only 20 games remaining.

“You wonder if the punishment fits the crime, when what may have been accidental contact with the ref is punishable by 10 games,” said injured Duck defenseman Ken Baumgartner, also vice president of the NHL Players Assn. “You get an incident where a player goes crazy and starts throwing a linesman around in an altercation, and it often goes unpunished.”

Daigneault has 72 hours to appeal, and his agent, Ron Salcer, said he is leaning toward it even though the NHL warned that an appeal could result in a longer suspension. Daigneault will decide after meeting with an NHLPA official after the team flies to Washington today.

Daigneault was turning to skate up-ice to fend off a Vancouver short-handed attack when he bumped Koharski and swung his stick out with his right hand, hitting Koharski in the legs.

Daigneault said he believed Koharski, slightly behind him along the boards and unable to get out of the way, was a Canuck player. Seconds later, with Koharski already signaling a penalty against him, Daigneault swung his stick at Koharski again--this time while facing him--but didn’t hit him.

“Although the initial slash by Mr. Daigneault appeared to be reactionary after the collision with referee Koharski, the contact was serious enough to warrant this suspension,” NHL senior vice president Brian Burke, the league’s chief disciplinarian, said in a statement. “The second slash, although there was no contact made, was clearly deliberate.”

As harsh as the punishment seemed, it could have been worse. Had the NHL ruled that Daigneault meant to injure Koharski, he could have been given 20 games, as was given to the Chicago Blackhawks’ Tom Lysiak in 1983 for intentionally tripping a linesman.

Daigneault said he has watched the video of the incident “over and over.”

“As I’m trying to skate backward, Koharski is right on my back. I don’t know where he is,” Daigneault said. “Then I do my pivot toward center ice and swing my stick.”

The second slash looked worse because Koharski was in front of Daigneault as he completed his turn.

“Another little incident down the ice, I slashed again,” Daigneault said. “I can’t comment on that. If there is an appeal, I’ll have to explain that the best I can to the NHL.”

Salcer and Daigneault were unhappy there was no hearing to allow Daigneault to plead his case.

“Koharski was yelling at him and J.J. was telling him, ‘Then get out of my way,’ ” Salcer said. “If he knew he’d hit him, he’d know why he was upset. He didn’t know why.”

Daigneault, who makes $650,000, would lose about $75,000 in salary. He also was fined $1,000.

“I’m very disappointed, because I’m really not that type of player,” Daigneault said. “I’m not really an aggressive player.”