Kostopoulos gets 3-game suspension

November 11, 2008

Canadiens forward Tom Kostopoulos was suspended for three games without pay by the league yesterday for his check on Maple Leafs defenseman Mike Van Ryn, who sustained a concussion and broken nose and hand. He is expected to be out at least a month. Kostopoulos received a five-minute boarding penalty and game misconduct when he hit Van Ryn from behind during the Maple Leafs' 6-3 win Saturday. "While it is my determination that Kostopoulos did not deliver a check to an unsuspecting opponent, his actions caused injuries," NHL vice president Colin Campbell said in a statement . . . Igor Larionov, who won two Olympic gold medals with the Soviet Union national team and collected three Stanley Cups with the Red Wings, and Glenn Anderson, who won six Stanley Cups (five with the Oilers, one with the Rangers) and is fourth on the all-time playoff scoring list, were inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto . . . The Devils placed defenseman Paul Martin on injured reserve with upper back soreness. Martin is the sixth Devils player on the injured list, joining goalie Martin Brodeur, centers Brian Rolston and Bobby Holik, winger Pierre-Luc Letourneau-Leblond, and defenseman Andy Greene . . . The Blues, responding to tight economic times, announced that at every remaining Saturday home game beginning Nov. 29, the organization will call the seat number of a fan and pay that person's mortgage or rent for four months, up to $4,000 total.

The Pistons will begin their West Coast road trip without guard Rodney Stuckey, who experienced lightheadedness and dizziness in Sunday night's loss to the Celtics. The Pistons say Stuckey remained in Detroit for testing and is listed as day to day . . . Utah center Mehmet Okur is returning to his home country of Turkey to deal with an illness in his family. The Jazz said they have excused Okur, but no other details were released.

Gilles Simon defeated Roger Federer, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, at the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai in the Swiss star's first match since a sore back forced him out of the Paris Masters Oct. 31. Andy Murray knocked off Andy Roddick, 6-4, 1-6, 6-1, in the other Red Group match of the round-robin tournament. "I was sort of skeptical going into the match because the practice sessions haven't been hard at all," Federer said. "I really tried to not push it at all. So I was actually happy that the back felt OK." The four-time Masters Cup winner also gave credit to Simon, who won their only previous meeting, also in three sets, in Toronto in July. "The better you play, the better he plays," Federer said. "He's quite a unique player and he makes you work hard." . . . Rafael Nadal will miss Spain's Davis Cup final against Argentina Nov. 21-23 because of a knee injury. The top-ranked Nadal said he was still struggling with tendinitis in his right knee following a week of treatment. "The knee said no," the 22-year-old said. Spain team doctor Angel Ruiz-Cotorro said Nadal would need 3-6 weeks to recover. "These are very difficult moments, but I have done all that I could to be ready for the final," Nadal said. "It was a huge objective, and I'm used to playing with pain, but this is a distinct, new pain that I couldn't control."

Pitcher Scott Olsen and outfielder Josh Willingham have been traded from the Marlins to the Nationals, according to agent Matt Sosnick. Citing sources, ESPN.com reported that the Marlins would receive second baseman Emilio Bonifacio and two minor leaguers in the deal. The trade signals the start of the Nationals' efforts to reshape their roster after a worst-in-the-majors 59-102 season . . . Righthander Brandon Duckworth signed a one-year contract with the Royals and was sent outright to Triple A Omaha. Duckworth spent most of last season with Omaha but went 3-3 with a 4.50 ERA in seven starts for Kansas City . . . Elwin Charles "Preacher" Roe, the colorful lefthanded pitcher for the Dodger teams of the late 1940s and early 1950s, died Sunday of colon cancer in West Plains, Mo. He was 92. Obituary, Page B11 . . . The Padres withdrew their $4 million offer to Trevor Hoffman, leaving it unclear whether they would continue to negotiate with the career saves leader. General manager Kevin Towers would not comment on whether the team was still interested in signing Hoffman . . . Lefthanded reliever Scott Eyre signed a $2 million, one-year contract to remain with the Phillies. Eyre was 3-0 with a 1.88 ERA in 19 appearances for Philadelphia . . . MLB won't be testing for human growth hormone any time soon, according to an expert in the field who spoke at the Growth Hormone Summit in Beverly Hills, Calif., presented by MLB and UCLA. "Growth hormone is widely abused by athletes," said Richard Holt, a professor at University of Southampton in England. "There is little scientific evidence that growth hormone is performance-enhancing. I think the scientists are wrong and the athletes are right." Drug experts are looking for a test to detect HGH, but no athlete has ever tested positive for it.

Course designer Pete Dye was among six people inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, Fla. The 2008 class also featured players Craig Wood, Denny Shute, Bob Charles, and Carole Semple Thompson, and writer Herbert Warren Wind . . . A federal court in Wilmington, Del., has granted Callaway Golf's request for a permanent injunction to stop sales of Acushnet's Titleist Pro V1 golf balls, effective Jan. 1, meaning pro golfers will have to cease using the popular ball. The court also rejected Acushnet's request to overturn a jury verdict that found that the Pro V1 infringed on Callaway's patent . . . Negotiations to get the Indy 300 race outside Brisbane, Australia, back onto the Indy Racing League calendar broke down after local backers and series organizers failed to agree on the timing of the event. The Indy 300, which has been held at Surfers Paradise since 1991, is expected to be replaced by an A1 Grand Prix event.