By Canadian Press

5 P.E.I. minor hockey players suspended 25 games over racial slurs toward N.S. player

Feb 11, 2022 | 8:31 AM

CHARLOTTETOWN — The governing body for hockey in Prince Edward Island is handing down 25-game suspensions to five players accused of hurling racial slurs toward a Nova Scotia goalie last November.

Mark Connors, a Black 16-year-old goalie for the Halifax Hawks U18 AA team, says a group of teenagers in the stands during a game in the P.E.I. capital uttered racist slurs at him and then did so again later at a hotel.

He said he was repeatedly called the N-word and at the hotel, he was told hockey was a white man’s sport.

The five players had been suspended indefinitely following the alleged incidents.

In a statement today, Hockey PEI’s special discipline and ethics committee says a third-party investigator found inconclusive evidence the players uttered racist slurs at Connors at the hotel, citing lack of witnesses. But it says the investigation is still open.

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Aside from the 25-game suspensions, the five players will also need to complete anti-racism training.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 11, 2022.

The Canadian Press