Soon after Gary Bettman slapped Rick Rypien with a six-game suspension Friday, the NHL commissioner called the Wild fan whom the Vancouver Canucks' agitator accosted and offered him dinner and some tickets.
"He said, 'Sorry about the events, and players should never ever put their hands on a fan,'" said James Engquist, appreciative of Bettman's gesture.
Engquist said it's been an emotional couple of days. He says he's been harassed via phone calls, e-mails and on the Internet. He is seeking legal representation to ascertain options with both Rypien and the harassment.
As classy as Engquist felt Bettman was in calling him, he was disappointed by the length of Rypien's suspension.
"This is Mr. Rypien's career, this is his job, he's being paid to represent the NHL, and they feel (taking) a two-week break off without pay and come back to work is satisfactory," Engquist said. "But as far as the real world goes, that person would be held accountable as far as the law and just as a company in general, that person would probably be fired."
An interesting analogy Mr. Engquist. So you think the same set of rules that apply to workplaces like my office should apply to the NHL? Except there are no loud mouth, vulgar clients where I work screaming at me. If there were, I might also grab one of them eventually.
I'm not condoning what Rick Rypien did. You never touch a fan. That goes beyond what is acceptable even in a violent sport like hockey. But Mr. Engquist is likely no choir boy. I am sure he feels the price he paid for his tickets gives him the right to be rude, obnoxious and abusive. Then he gets indigent and threatens legal action when someone strikes back.
Maybe it's time the fans show a little class too.
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