Simpson Gets a Game Misconduct

The Mighty Ducks were down to five defensemen by the end of the first period Thursday, as Todd Simpson was sent off for the night after a fight when referee Don Koharski ruled that his jersey was not tied down properly.

Simpson and Nashville’s Scott Walker tangled 17 minutes 57 seconds into the first period, with Simpson getting the better of the fight. Simpson, though, was given the game misconduct penalty.

League rules require that jerseys be tied down so they can’t be taken off easily when a fight starts, giving that player the advantage of added mobility over the other fighter and making it harder for the other player to grab onto him.

Duck Coach Mike Babcock said that replays showed that Simpson’s jersey was clearly tied down.

“I tie my sweater down every game,” Simpson said. “It’s tied down with snaps and Velcro. If it gets pulled on, it can come off.”

Bryan Murray, the Ducks’ general manager, said he was going to appeal to the league office, as a player who gets three game misconduct penalties is suspended for a game and then is suspended one game for every game misconduct afterward. Simpson’s rugged style of play makes him susceptible to accumulating game misconduct penalties.

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Predator forward Jordin Tootoo became the first player of Inuit descent to appear in an NHL game.

Tootoo, who comes from Rankin Inlet, Nunavut, a small Canadian territory just south of the Arctic Circle, had one shot on goal.

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Duck goaltender Martin Gerber had a good effort go for naught. Gerber stopped 23 of 26 shots, including three saves on breakaways, during the Ducks’ 3-1 loss.

The Ducks scored two goals or fewer in 12 of Gerber’s starts last season. Gerber had a 1.95 goals-against average, yet had a 6-11-3 record last season.

“I thought Gerbs played real good tonight,” Babcock said. “Yet Gerbs could accuse guys of no run support.”

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The Ducks signed defenseman Shane O’Brien, their eighth-round pick in June, to a three-year contract.

O’Brien was assigned to Cincinnati of the American Hockey League.