A hockey player has been suspended after shoving a referee while on the ice, sending the official sliding into a wall.
The push by Bridgeport Islanders forward Adam Beckman was committed during a game against the Charlotte Checkers on Saturday.
The incident was captured on video, showing the events unfold from a distance.
Beckman can be seen skating towards the ref, apparently failing to notice the black-and-white clad arbiter.
As they met, Beckman gave a violent shove that sent the official careening to the ice and sliding to a hard stop on a rink wall. According to the New York Post, the ref recovered and continued with the game.
It was only after Beckman looked at his victim that he realized his mistake. The player quickly extended a hand to the ref, but it seems this was not enough to undo the unintended confrontation moments before.
Watch the video below.
The play that earned Adam Beckman a 10-game suspension for abuse of official #Isles pic.twitter.com/lObYwCuaZx
— Stefen Rosner (@stefen_rosner) April 9, 2025
Do you think this sentence was too light?
For the shove, Beckman received a 10-game suspension.
“Beckman was suspended under the provisions of AHL Rule 40.3 for physical abuse of an official (Category II),” the AHL wrote in an Tuesday release.
“Beckman will miss Bridgeport’s final five games of the 2024-25 regular season, as well as the next five games for which he is active on an AHL club roster.”
The Islanders only recently acquired Beckman.
According to the team’s website, the now-troublesome player was traded for from the New Jersey Devils on March 7.
The post chronicled the 23-year-old player’s history in the league.
“In 224 career AHL games with the Iowa Wild and Utica, Beckman totaled 141 points (70 goals, 71 assists),” the Islanders’ post stated.
“He scored a career-high 24 goals in 2022-23 with Iowa and added a goal in two Calder Cup Playoff games that season. Prior to his professional career, Beckman played three seasons (2017-18 to 2020-21) in the Western Hockey League (WHL) with the Spokane Chiefs and totaled 196 career points (97 goals, 99 assists) in 153 games.”
Regardless of his previous record, his goals will remain at zero for the duration of his suspension.
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