Professional hockey player Justin Pender has been suspended after attacking a fan who taunted him
Professional hockey player named Justin Pender has been suspended after getting into a heated altercation and fighting a fan who was taunting him outside of the locker room.
A heated altercation broke out between a player and a fan in Harbour Grace Newfoundland and Labrador, a player from the Avalon East Senior Hockey League.
Clarenville Ford Caribous assistant captain, Justin Pender has been suspended by the league for attacking a fan who was taunting him outside of the locker room due to him being ejected from the game.
Pender, who was clearly upset from the game, got ejected with less than 10 minutes remaining in the game for taking multiple runs at an opponent.
This is when things got ugly between Pender and the fan who taunted him.
CBC News has released a statement on the situation:
CBC News has obtained a copy of security camera footage, which shows four male fans making their way to the hallway entrance beneath the arena bleachers, where the dressing rooms are located.
One of the fans, John Drover of Bay Roberts, can be seen gesturing at Pender as the player enters the hallway from the ice surface.
Pender stops and throws the broken shaft of his stick at the fans from a distance of nearly 10 metres, and it lands harmlessly at Drover's feet.
Pender then starts walking aggressively toward the fans, fully clad in his hockey gear and already incensed from an earlier outburst on the ice in which he confronted the CeeBees' bench and smashed his stick on the leg of an opposing player as an official was escorting Pender off the ice. Video of that on-ice skirmish has been shared widely on social media.
Meanwhile, a young boy can be seen on the security video entering the hallway entrance, but quickly retreats when he sees Pender - who stands six feet four inches, weighs 215 pounds and has a reputation for playing an edgy, tough style of hockey - storming toward him.
However, Drover stands his ground as Pender reaches the end of the hallway. It's at this point that Pender, wearing his bulky hockey gloves, starts throwing punches at Drover.
Pender's teammate, Thomas Hedges, who was also ejected from the game, can also be seen running down the hallway behind Pender.
Some of the fracas is not captured by the security camera, so it's not clear if Hedges is throwing punches or trying to extricate his teammate from the melee. Caribous' general manager Ivan Hapgood is also seen walking down the hallway and out of the camera frame.
One of the fans, John Drover of Bay Roberts, can be seen gesturing at Pender as the player enters the hallway from the ice surface.
Pender stops and throws the broken shaft of his stick at the fans from a distance of nearly 10 metres, and it lands harmlessly at Drover's feet.
Pender then starts walking aggressively toward the fans, fully clad in his hockey gear and already incensed from an earlier outburst on the ice in which he confronted the CeeBees' bench and smashed his stick on the leg of an opposing player as an official was escorting Pender off the ice. Video of that on-ice skirmish has been shared widely on social media.
Meanwhile, a young boy can be seen on the security video entering the hallway entrance, but quickly retreats when he sees Pender - who stands six feet four inches, weighs 215 pounds and has a reputation for playing an edgy, tough style of hockey - storming toward him.
However, Drover stands his ground as Pender reaches the end of the hallway. It's at this point that Pender, wearing his bulky hockey gloves, starts throwing punches at Drover.
Pender's teammate, Thomas Hedges, who was also ejected from the game, can also be seen running down the hallway behind Pender.
Some of the fracas is not captured by the security camera, so it's not clear if Hedges is throwing punches or trying to extricate his teammate from the melee. Caribous' general manager Ivan Hapgood is also seen walking down the hallway and out of the camera frame.
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