Ottawa Senators forward Shane Pinto has been suspended for 41 games for violating the NHL’s policy against sports betting.
The 22-year-old hockey player thus became the first player in the modern era to be suspended for betting on sporting events. The league announced the punishment for “activities associated with sports betting” on Thursday, specifying in passing that Pinto had not bet on NHL games.
The league added that it “considers the matter closed unless new information comes to our attention.”
Pinto is a restricted free agent and has yet to play a game in 2023-24 due to a contract dispute with the Senators.
Sports betting is only mentioned once in the collective bargaining agreement ratified by the NHL and the Players Association — “sports betting on NHL games is prohibited.”
The document also states that commissioner Gary Bettman is the only one who can punish a player for his behavior off the ice.
Pinto, a second-round pick of the Senators in the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, has 20 goals and 15 assists in his first full NHL season in 2022-23.
The American from Franklin Square, New York, has 21 goals and 22 assists in 99 NHL games with the Ottawa team. Pinto missed most of the 2021-22 season with a shoulder injury.
The NHL, several of its teams, and some of its star players — including Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews — have entered into sponsorship agreements with certain sports betting sites.
Legendary NHL player Wayne Gretzky has also appeared in some commercials promoting sports betting.
Pinto is considered one of the Senators’ top prospects at center. The Ontario club, which has a 3-3-0 record so far this season, is scheduled to face the New York Islanders on Thursday night.
The NFL has suspended a few players in recent years for similar misdeeds.
Calvin Ridley, a wide receiver for the Jacksonville Jaguars, was suspended for a full NFL season after betting on games while inactive near the end of the 2021 campaign.