THUNDER BAY – A Kam River Fighting Walleye blue-liner is facing a lengthy suspension for allegedly uttering an ethnic slur at a Thunder Bay North Stars player.
The incident took place on Monday night, during Game 4 of the two teams’ semifinal series, resulting in Trystan Goodman being ejected from the game and being given a gross misconduct.
The North Stars player in question was Mason Wesley, who is Indigenous. Goodman is also Indigenous.
Superior International Junior Hockey League commissioner Darin Nicholas said a hearing is planned, though no date has yet been set.
“The penalty … means it’s an indefinite suspension pending a league investigation. The minimum penalty that can be assessed for that is a five-game suspension. But I’m required as the league’s director to investigate further to see if that sufficient or whether or not that needs to be upgraded as well,” Nicholas said.
Nicholas said it’s too early to get into specific details, but did say on-ice officials did hear Goodman say something objectionable to Wesley midway through the first period of Monday’s game.
Goodman, 19, hails from Beardmore, Ont. and is in his second season with the Fighting Walleye, who dispatched of the North Stars in four games. He’s expected to miss at least the first five games of the Bill Salonen Cup final as a result of the suspension.
Wesley, who is also 19, is in his first season with the North Stars and was born in Constance Lake First Nation.
"We're just trying to determine exactly what was said and how the person that was the target received it and that's all part of the league investigation that's under way," Nicholas said.
TBNewswatch reached out to both the North Stars and the Fighting Walleye for comment, but officials from both teams declined the opportunity, saying it's in the league's hands.
