A French hockey player involved in a scuffle with Canadian star Tom Wilson during the Olympic qualifying round has been suspended for the rest of the competition. Pierre Crinnon won’t be participating in the upcoming match against Germany, as the French Hockey Federation found his actions inconsistent with their values. If France advances, he will remain sidelined.
The French Ice Hockey Federation stated that Crinnon’s behavior, even though he’s been excluded from play, clearly violates the Olympic spirit and undermines the principles of the sport. They emphasized that the decision was made collaboratively with the French National Olympic and Sports Committee.
In the match itself, which Canada won 10-2, Crinnon and Wilson got into an altercation with about seven minutes left. Both players were ejected since the Olympic rules don’t offer a five-minute penalty for fighting. It seemed Wilson was retaliating for a hit on teammate Nathan MacKinnon earlier in the game. Crinnon had previously punched MacKinnon, leading to his own two-minute penalty.
As of now, France hasn’t secured any points in their first Olympic match, which is certainly not the start they were hoping for. On a different note, Canada is positioned to face either the Czech Republic or Denmark in the quarterfinals.
