Minnesota Wild forward James Sheppard fractures kneecap could face suspension
Minnesota Wild forward James Sheppard was injured in an off-ice incident in Vail, Colorado, on Saturday. Sheppard was involved in an ATV accident and fractured his left kneecap. Sheppard had surgery on the injured leg later Saturday night.
Reports indicate that the injury will cause the former first round draft pick to miss three to four months of the upcoming NHL season, which opens on October 7.
Standard player contracts contain the following clause, “If the player, in the judgment of the club’s physician, is disabled or not in good physical condition at the commencement of the season or at any subsequent time during the season (unless such condition is the direct result of any injury sustained during the course of his employment as a hockey player with the club, including travel with his team or on business requested by the club) so as to render him unfit to play skilled hockey, then it is mutually agreed that the club shall have the right to suspend the player for such period of disability or unfitness, and no compensation shall be payable for that period under this SPC.”
Sheppard’s salary for the 2010-2011 seasons is $803,250. NHL players are paid on a per-day basis over the course of the 186-day NHL season. Sheppard is scheduled to make $4,319 per day. It is not unreasonable to assume that Sheppard will miss 120 days of the season. If that were the case, Sheppard would lose over $500,000 in salary.
Wild general manager Chuck Fletcher had this to say: “We’re still looking into the relevant facts and making sure that James is getting the best medical care. At this stage we’re concentrating on helping James speed up the recovery process as much as possible.”
Fletcher also said, “we have no reason to believe he was doing anything reckless or careless. There’s no evidence to suggest he did anything other than undertake a dangerous activity.”
The injury comes at a terrible time in Sheppard’s career, as his development has been slower than the Wild organization expected. It was thought that this would be the make or break year for Sheppard with the hockey club.
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