Maple Leafs’ Mikhail Grabovski sued for punching Montreal Canadiens fan in Vancouver
Rivalries in the National Hockey League are nothing new. Some of the rivalries in the game today include The Battle of Ontario (Toronto vs. Ottawa), and the Battle of Alberta (Calgary
vs. Edmonton). While those two rivalries have been known to heat up all the time, nothing says NHL rivalry like Montreal Canadiens vs. Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Habs-Leafs rivalry is one that has withstood the test of time, dating back several years. Mikhail Grabovski, who plays centre for the Leafs, is well aware of this rivalry. And now,
he is being sued because of it.
The Belarusian forward, himself a former Canadien, is being sued by a couple who claim he took the famous rivalry too far. A civil suit filed on 14 September states that Grabovski punched
Dylan Richardson of Langley, British Columbia in the face during the Olympic Games in Vancouver. Richardson, who works in the automotive industry, was knocked unconscious by the blow, and was wearing a Montreal Canadiens jersey at the time.
The official court document states that “immediately after striking the plaintiff Dylan Richardson with the intent to further humiliate and denigrate (him), the defendant assaulted and
committed a battery on the plaintiff Brenna Richardson by punching (her) in the face.”
Richardson suffered other injuries in the attack, which included, but were not limited to a head injury, facial fractures that required surgical attention, and an injury to his back. The
plaintiff and his wife are seeking damages as a result of the incident.
Grabovski, who had been playing with the Belarusian national team at the time, was arrested by police, but was never formally charged. The fight was allegedly influenced by alcohol, and
resulted in a police report of more than 100 pages afterwards.
The police did not lay any charges against Grabovski because convictions were unlikely at the time.
According to Vancouver Police Chief Lindsey Houghton, “There was no reasonable grounds to believe that any one person committed an offence, so unfortunately there was nothing they could
forward to Crown counsel.”
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