Halifax Mooseheads forward Zachary L’Heureux has been suspended again by the QMJHL after a post-game incident last week.
The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League said in a Wednesday release L’Heureux — a Nashville Predators prospect — will sit out 10 games after “an incident involving a fan” in Gatineau, Que., was caught on video.
Journalist Yanick St-Denis posted a recording on Twitter that allegedly shows L’Heureux directing his stick towards fans after losing the game to the Gatineau Olympiques in a shootout on Feb. 8.
“As demonstrated in the new video footage obtained by the League, the player’s gesture which occurred following the game simply cannot be tolerated by the QMJHL,” a league statement said on Wednesday afternoon. “Moreover, since the player has been suspended on several occasions, he is considered as a repeat offender.”
This was L’Heureux’s ninth suspension in QMJHL, and his highest suspension ever. The Montreal native has now been suspended for a total of 37 games since joining the league as a 16-year-old in the 2019-20 season.
It’s his second suspension this season. He also served a three-game ban following a staged fight this year against the Cape Breton Eagles.
Originally, L’Heureux was handed an indefinite suspension after the incident in Gatineau and missed the Mooseheads’ final two road games of a trip through Quebec last week. He’s eligible to return to the Halifax lineup on March 9 against the Acadie-Bathurst Titan.
In an email to Global News, Mooseheads spokesperson Scott MacIntosh said the team won’t comment on the number of suspensions L’Heureux now has, but said they support the QMJHL and the ruling they handed down for the incident on Feb. 8.
“The Halifax Mooseheads take these situations very seriously and we fully support the QMJHL’s decision,” the statement read.