Youth Hockey Coach Goes to Jail After Tripping a Young Player

Martin Tremblay is going to spend some time in the legal system’s version of the penalty box. The youth hockey coach from Vancouver, Canada has been sentenced to 15 days in jail for tripping opposing players during a postgame handshake last summer. Pretty mean-spirited, right?

Tremblay, 48, went from coaching his son’s team to outright 'hitman' after the game when he was convicted of sticking his foot out, causing two players, aged 10 and 13, to trip and fall on the ice.  One of the victims injured his wrist when he tumbled to the ice.  Prosecutors had initially asked Tremblay to serve 30 days of house arrest, but the judge in the case took it a step further, handing down the 15-day sentence in an attempt to extol the importance of teaching character.

Judge Patrick Chen explained the punishment:“Society will not tolerate the assault of children by adults. [The sentence is] a signal to other parents heavily involved in the sporting activities of their children that they must be seen as models of good and acceptable behavior and not as instigators of violence and of riotous behavior.”

In addition to the trip, authorities say Tremblay called one of the victims in the matter “twinkle toes” and mocked the way he skated, causing the boy to start bawling. Incidentally, Tremblay’s team won the game, 5-4.