Mario Lemieux: League 'failed' in punishment of Friday's brawl

The NHL handed down 23 games of suspensions and more than $200,000 in fines or lost pay after Friday's brawl-a-thon between the New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins.

In Mario Lemieux's mind, the league came up short, even questioning whether he wanted to remain part of the NHL.

"Hockey is a tough, physical game, and it always should be," the Penguins owner and Hall of Famer said in a statement released by the team. "But what happened Friday night on Long Island wasn't hockey. It was a travesty. It was painful to watch the game I love turn into a sideshow like that.

"The NHL had a chance to send a clear and strong message that those kinds of actions are unacceptable and embarrassing to the sport. It failed."

Friday's game, a 9-3 Islanders win, featured 15 fighting majors and 346 penalty minutes.

Late Saturday night, the NHL suspended Islanders forward Trevor Gillies ($24,193) nine games for elbowing Pittsburgh's Eric Tangradi in the head and throwing several punches afterward. New York's Matt Martin ($41,585) got four games for punching the Penguins' Max Talbot from behind and Pittsburgh's Eric Godard ($40,322) received an automatic 10 games for leaving the bench to join the fray.

NHL disciplinarian Colin Campbell also fined the Islanders $100,000, saying the team "must bear some responsibility for their failure to control their players."

"We are entirely comfortable with how Friday night's events were handled," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly said Sunday. "We have no other response to Mr. Lemieux's statement."

Boston Bruins winger Milan Lucic, whose team has been involved in recent fight-filled games, backed the league's rulings.

"I think the NHL took a stand against line brawls and going out trying to hurt someone," he said.

The fighting stemmed from an earlier meeting in which Talbot delivered a hit that injured Blake Comeau and Brent Johnson broke bones in Islanders netminder Rick DiPietro's face with a one-punch knockdown after the two goalies agreed to drop the gloves.

Tangradi missed Sunday's game with a suspected concussion.

"We, as a league, must do a better job of protecting the integrity of the game and the safety of our players," Lemieux said. "We must make it clear that those kinds of actions will not be tolerated and will be met with meaningful disciplinary action.

"If the events relating to Friday night reflect the state of the league, I need to rethink whether I want to be a part of it."

Contributing: Kevin Allen, USA TODAY