Valeri Nichushkin placed in NHLPA assistance program stage 3 - suspended without pay for min. 6 months

[Buck Naked]

Lmao, he is a donkey, playing in the third pair, very sheltered minutes. If he played +25 minutes against the opponent's best he would finish the game with -10.

Against a team with three productive lines, sheltering is not really an option. Every Dman on the Avs play against all competition basically. It's easy to look at the shift charts and see this.

 

[Uberpecker]

I don't disagree per se, but I'm guessing the guy paying them millions would. If someone can get drug tested working at Walmart, why not the NHL?

Why would anything Walmart does mean it's right.
Corporate "culture" and even more so professional sports, especially in northern America are hotbeds of hypocrisy.

 

[GaboriklessWild]

Against a team with three productive lines, sheltering is not really an option. Every Dman on the Avs play against all competition basically. It's easy to look at the shift charts and see this.

He plays very sheltered minutes and only spends a minimum amount of time on the ice, and mainly when there are neutral zone faceoffs.

 

[Ncit3]

Hate to see it. Not gonna really speculate what he did. But half the league could be suspended for cocaine usage. I know when Colin Wilson wrote his players tribune stuff he came out and talked about just how common cocaine usage is in the NHL.

 

[Ncit3]

He plays very sheltered minutes and only spends a minimum amount of time on the ice, and mainly when there are neutral zone faceoffs.

View attachment 870491

Who give a shit what minutes Jack Johnson plays? He is allowed to be disappointed a teammate f***ed around and got himself suspended. Do we really have to launch into analytics to prove a dude sucks? At least he can lace his skates up and be on the ice. He might not be the most effective player but availability is the best statistic.

God you guys are exhausting on this site.

 

[Breakers]

A Player's salary is divided by the total number of calendar days in the regular season (minimum 184 days) to determine their daily salary, and they're paid on the 15th and 30th of each month

I mean if the suspension started now like I read in here he isn’t losing money

 

[Fire Sweeney]

I didn't think the nhl actually tested

They only test and punish euros or plugs.

 

[BerthMania]

It's all fine and dandy until one day, those holes in the preventative barriers line-up and it leads to an incident.

This is such a shitty attitude towards drugs/alcohol. "It won't happen to me" said the guy who drank three pints and then drove home.

I'm amazed that a teacher, such as yourself, isn't able to think critically on this.

Nuke signed a contract, that 100% would have had some kind of wellness policy included. He violated that, again.

End of story.

I don't see why the fact I'm a teacher implies I must agree with you. I'm absolutely against driving under the influence of anything because it makes the lives of other people in danger. It's not the same as using some drugs at home and not using it at work. I think it's a matter of personal freedom, and even though I agree that if one accepts a contract that implies he can't use any drugs he shouldn't use any, I can still question the fact employers put that in their contracts

 

[Raistlin]

The stage 3 suspension is a first time occurrence for him. Hopefully when all is said and done it sets him on the right path. Currently he is obviously too big of a wild card to put any trust into. That's often the case for those who struggle with addiction.


Lol are you saying this is the kind of stance we should be taking?

Obviously not, but it's also maybe a bit too lenient how everyone is wishing him well, and condemning the league, for a lengthy suspension after he repeatedly let his teammates and family down. I brought up a stark contrast how some first world modern countries have 0 tolerance for drugs, not that we should emulate them.

 

[Tasteless Beaver]

I hope he finds a way to recover, but my concern here is that the Player Assistance program will discourage players from admitting and seeking help for their addictions if this is the possible result. Between mental health and collecting a sizeable pay check - a lot of these guys are going to choose the latter.

 

[britdevil]

I don't see why the fact I'm a teacher implies I must agree with you. I'm absolutely against driving under the influence of anything because it makes the lives of other people in danger. It's not the same as using some drugs at home and not using it at work. I think it's a matter of personal freedom, and even though I agree that if one accepts a contract that implies he can't use any drugs he shouldn't use any, I can still question the fact employers put that in their contracts

Hey man, you do you. I would never expect anyone to agree with me.

 

[Rob Brown]

It’s not an employers business what their employees do outside company time unless it affects the company. It’s gross that the US allows it so frequently, but employee rights are largely a joke there anyway.

If a player has been in the assistance program multiple times and it's well publicized that there are some sort of issues surrounding the player, I'm sure it was impacting the company (in this case the Avalanche) in some way.

 

[Hasbro]

There's no way the Avalanche can bring him back.

He comes off suspension, they'd be holding their breath he doesn't flame out of a third straight post season.

 

[kp61c]

This is getting ridiculous. He got a fever and the only prescription is the KHL.

 

[Vasilevskiy]

Curious timing, I have to admit. Avs have to let him go, can't rely on this player.

 

[Cousin Eddie]

I hope he finds a way to recover, but my concern here is that the Player Assistance program will discourage players from admitting and seeking help for their addictions if this is the possible result. Between mental health and collecting a sizeable pay check - a lot of these guys are going to choose the latter.

I thought about this too.

On one hand, good on the NHL by prohibiting drug use for those who have entered the program. They don’t want the program to just be abused as a “drop in” type place for guys to go as an excuse when their wives/families catch them doing drugs. That’s obviously the easiest escape from these situations. You betray your pregnant wife with a hooker and drugs in a hotel in Seattle and she threatens to leave you, you say it’s a problem and you need help. You play the victim. You’re an absolute scumbag because of it but you get away with it. That seems like the easy escape for sure. And I’m sure it’s been abused plenty.

But then there’s the other side. The NHL doesn’t prohibit recreational drug use from any other players. Only those who have been in the program. I wonder how many NHL players actually knew this rule? Are we going to see players try to solve their problems themselves instead of using the program because in their heads they want to be able to sneak a rip here and there at the occasional shaker down the road?

 

[Reality Czech]

Why would anything Walmart does mean it's right.
Corporate "culture" and even more so professional sports, especially in northern America are hotbeds of hypocrisy.

My attitude towards drugs is pretty liberal but an employer has the right to decide who they trust working for their company or not. It's not just Walmart, a lot of employers would wanna know if their employees are using or not. Especially in sports when you invest millions into the guy.

Yeah addiction is a bitch but it's on the player for not seeking help before it jeopardized his entire career.

 

[Skinnyjimmy08]

Hate to see it. Not gonna really speculate what he did. But half the league could be suspended for cocaine usage. I know when Colin Wilson wrote his players tribune stuff he came out and talked about just how common cocaine usage is in the NHL.

I remember seeing a meme years ago that said....

"2 of the biggest shocking things I found out when I became an adult... How expensive cheese actually is, and how many people do cocaine"

And it's sooooo true

 

[LaCarriere]

There's no way the Avalanche can bring him back.

He comes off suspension, they'd be holding their breath he doesn't flame out of a third straight post season.

I think we will know by June 30th. To me, a buyout is their only option. Trading him at this point seems unlikely, given his recurring issues and money/term left on his contract.

They could try to just outright terminate his contract, but seeing as how he still has "step 4" of the assistance program, I'm sure the NHLPA would fight any sort of outright termination.

I don't see any scenario where the Avs are able to just walk away free and clear of this contract.

 

[Colorado Avalanche]

Enjoy KHL

 

[elFefino SVOBODA]

I heard he was with Ruzicka, supplied by Vrana!

 

[Beerz]

Why would anything Walmart does mean it's right.
Corporate "culture" and even more so professional sports, especially in northern America are hotbeds of hypocrisy.

Hypocrisy is human nature.. it is embedded in every aspect of human culture. How you are determining what and where is a "hotbed" for it is kinda comical.

 

[Rpenny]

Obviously this was caused by what happened in the Seattle hotel. The woman was so out of it they could not even get her into the cab

 

[These Are The Days]

They only test and punish euros or plugs.

There's always the possibility of stripping Ottawa of another 1st round pick over this.

 

[OKR]

So the guy like a couple bumps here and there. It’s not a performance enhancing drug.

You remove every player in the NHL who occasionally does some bumps and you’ll struggle to ice a full lineup.

If he did piss hot for cocaine, it’s extremely unlikely to be ”couple bumps here and there” due to the very short detection window of Cocaine, like most water solluble drugs.

If you are only a occasional user and took couple bumps today, you’re more than likely pass the test 24 hours later as long as you’re not dehydrated and all the metabolites will be gone in 1-2 days on average.