NHL Officials' Association releases statement on Wideman decision

The National Hockey League Officials' Association released a statement on Saturday vehemently disagreeing with the neutral arbitrator’s decision to cut Calgary Flames defenseman Dennis Wideman’s 20-game suspension in half.

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Via Bob McKenzie of TSN:

Wideman played 18 minutes in Friday night’s loss to the Arizona Coyotes after missing the previous 19 games due to the ban from a hit on linesman Don Henderson on Jan. 27. Because the suspension reduction went down to 10 games, the Flames defenseman will only forfeit $282,258 instead of the original $564,516.

While the NHLOA statement doesn’t specifically state Henderson’s injury, a February Calgary Sun story reported that the 47-year-old linesman was suffering from concussion symptoms that may not just end his season, but also his 20-plus year career in the league.

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Sean Leahy is the associate editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at puckdaddyblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Sean_Leahy

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