Joke is on the NHL...

I've said all along that this league is now a joke. The jokes continued Wednesday for Dane Byers and Coach John Tortorella with Byers being suspended for a game and the Coach being fined $10,000.

Byers was deemed to have "instigated" a fight with Trevor Glass with 1:10 to go in Vancouver Tuesday night. Darren Dreger of TSN reported that going into Tuesdays action, the instigator has been called in 8 of 117 fights this year. Funny that the refs called it in this case, when a mandatory fine and suspension would kick in. Byers, who grew up in Saskatchewan, had about 8 family members attending tonight's game against Tom Renney in Edmonton. Of course now they won't see him... and you'll all continue to see less and less fighting in this ridiculously boring, European soccer game on ice.

I think Gary Bettman should take the player's driver's licenses away for a month for fighting also... maybe give a penalty APR on their credit cards for a year. That oughtta help deter this violence (that leaves fans screaming louder than they do for goals)...

Notes:
The Vinny Prospal-Brandon Dubinsky-Marian Gaborik line will be reunited tonight... Enver Lisin returns to the lineup tonight after missing a game with a bruised foot. He will play with Chris Drury and Ryan Callahan... Look for Artem Anisimov to center Ales Kotalik and Chis Higgins... Steve Valiquette will start his third game of the season.