Danish hockey team the Odense Bulldogs has written an open letter to show player unification against what it feels is a light suspension after a bad incident involving one of its players. The Bulldogs were taking on the Frederikshavn White Hawks Friday night when Kristian Jensen grabbed Lucas Rasmussen from behind and hauled him to the ice, slamming his head in the process. With Rasmussen clearly unconscious and with his helmet gone, Jensen proceeded to punch him in the side of the head. Watch this video below:
Jensen, who goes by KJ, was handed a two month ban from the league for the incident. He'll miss 17 games as a result. In the letter, the Odense Bulldogs argue the suspension doesn't go nearly far enough.
"This incident is one of the most grotesque situations ever seen in hockey and one where KJ shows no regard for human life and an absolute disrespect for his opponent and for the game of hockey. To come up with a sentence of a two-month ban where KJ will miss only seventeen games is a travesty and far too light a punishment for an assault that in the worst-case scenario could have resulted in the death of an eighteen-year-old kid."
"We feel that the decision to suspend Kristian Jensen for a brief two months was made far too quickly without realizing the severity of the situation. Although it may be the longest suspension in Danish hockey, it does not fit the punishment for a crime of this magnitude as seen in other examples from around the world."
As an example of the suspension the team is looking for, the Bulldogs bring up the Steve Moore incident from the NHL in 2004 when Todd Bertuzzi hit him with what the team calls "a very similar punch" while Moore was laying helmetless on the ice. Bertuzzi was suspended for a total of 17 months from the NHL and was charged with, and found guilty of, assault in a court. Bertuzzi was given a conditional discharge requiring 80 hours of community service and one year's probation.
"[Rasmussen] has sustained immense injuries which are still unclear as to the effect they will have on the remainder of his life," says the team in its letter. "We would ask the DIU (Danish Ice Hockey Union) to reevaluate the case and find a just punishment or ask the IIHF to step in and come up with an appropriate sentence."
Source: hockeytinget.dk
