by Alex Poletti

After a crushing overtime defeat at the hands of the San Jose Sharks, the Las Vegas Golden Knights have announced their intent to sue Sharks centermen Logan Couture and Barclay Goodrow for negligence after the two hockey players did not perform the Heimlich maneuver when Las Vegas was choking.

This announcement came mere hours after Goodrow shot the winning goal in game seven in overtime at SAP Center in San Jose. The win marked the Sharks’ incredible comeback from a 3-1 deficit against last year’s Western Conference champions.

Last year’s cinderella story, the 2017 expansion team finished third in the Pacific division, behind the Calgary Flames and their round one opponents, the Sharks. The Golden Knights took a commanding 3-1 lead in the series, but then the choking began.

“My client was clearly choking for a number of days,” team attorney Ross Liebowitz says, “and the defendants named did absolutely nothing to help. This is clear-cut negligence, and we intend to see Mr. Couture and Mr. Goodrow in court.”

Although the charges are not expected to make it through the legal system, it is clear that the two centermen were aware of the choking and yet did nothing to stop it. In fact, some say they even made the choking worse.

“These two were specifically named as defendants because their actions showed not that they were unaware of the choking, but rather they knew about it and purposefully made the situation worse,” Liebowitz explains.

Couture, a Canadian native, scored two goals against the Knights in game seven. Goodrow, also a Canadian native, scored the game winner, cementing the choke.

“It was like I couldn’t breathe,” Golden Knights left wing Nikita Gusev said in a Victim Impact Statement. “I was just standing there on the ice not knowing what was going to happen. And then I saw Logan [Couture] skating around me. He looked me dead in the eyes and smirked. Was this some kind of game to him?”

Along with filing charges, Golden Knights owner William P. Foley II has vocally attacked the Sharks and their behavior.

“This was clearly disrespectful to my organization,” the West Point grad says. “Any team with any semblance of a moral backbone would assess the situation, perform the Heimlich maneuver and let us win the series. Altogether, their victory was an utter show of disrespect.”