Incident between Ottawa coach, player 'crossed the line,' OHL investigating

The Ontario Hockey League is looking into an incident involving Ottawa 67’s and head coach/general manager Jeff Brown. Multiple sources told Yahoo Sports that Brown grabbed one of his own players on the bench during a game in Sarnia on Sept. 30. One source described Brown’s actions as a “horse-collar” – grabbing the player by the back of the jersey – and pulling him downward.

OHL commissioner David Branch said the league received “some comments which we found concerning” about the incident and were conducting interviews.

“We have a duty and commitment to our players and their player experience and we take that very seriously,” said Branch on Tuesday afternoon. “So we are in the process of talking to some of our players and others in Ottawa.”

Ottawa 67’s owner Jeff Hunt told their local CTV affiliate that Brown “crossed the line” and had apologized to the player in question.

The game in Sarnia was a testy affair with the Sting beating the 67’s 7-4.

Brown, a former NHL defenceman, was not on the bench for Ottawa’s 2-1 loss to the Kingston Frontenacs on Oct. 6 and instead watched the game from the stands. According to Branch, Brown has not been disciplined by the league while they’re investigating the accounts. He expects the interviews – conducted by an independent person from the league – to be finished sometime on Wednesday.