MINEOLA, N.Y. - New York Islanders forward Chris Simon, suspended for a league-record 25 games for a vicious on-ice hit, will not face criminal charges.
Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said her office considered "the willingness of the potential victim to support a criminal prosecution" and other factors in reaching its decision.
The NHL suspended Simon for his two-handed stick attack to the face of the New York Rangers' Ryan Hollweg during a March 8 game at the Nassau Coliseum.
Hollweg, who needed a few stitches on the chin but was not seriously hurt, met with prosecutors from Rice's office last week but told reporters afterward that he didn't think Simon should be arrested.
"They asked me if I wanted to, but I told them I didn't want to press charges," he said. "I'm not happy about what he did, but I want to focus on making the playoffs. I just want to move on."
It's not the first time an NHL player has been prosecuted for an on-ice incident. The Vancouver Canucks' Todd Bertuzzi pleaded guilty to causing bodily harm and missed 20 games for a blindside punch that left Colorado forward Steve Moore with broken bones in his neck on March 11, 2004. And the Rangers' Marty McSorley was convicted of assault with a weapon for slashing Vancouver's Donald Brashear in the head with his stick in February 2000. Bertuzzi missed 20 games, and McSorley was given an 18-month conditional discharge.
Simon must sit out the rest of the regular season and the postseason, if the club advances. If the Islanders were to play fewer than 10 playoff games, the suspension will carry over to next season. The ban is the longest in terms of games missed in NHL history, and it's Simon's sixth suspension.
Simon's agent was not immediately available to comment.
