(Toronto) Toronto team forward Brittany Howard was suspended for one match and fined after inflicting a violent double-check on Montreal team defender Catherine Daoust, announced the Professional women’s hockey league Thursday.
The incident occurred near the end of the second period of the game which ended 3-0 in favor of the Toronto team, when Howard delivered a double-check behind the head of Daoust during a scrum that broke out in front of the net.
Daoust got up on her own, visibly in pain.
PHOTO FRANK FRANKLIN II, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Catherine Daoust
Howard was not punished during the sequence, but Montreal team coach Kori Cheverie declared in a post-match press conference that the referees admitted not having seen the gesture.
Howard, along with her Toronto teammate Rebecca Leslie, were also relieved of $250 each for grabbing an opposing player’s gate.
It all happened during a scrum midway through the second period, resulting in six minor penalties — three on each side.