NEW YORK, July 29 (Reuters) - The National Hockey League's players union on Friday urged a U.S. court not to grant Commissioner Gary Bettman broad power to override arbitrators when deciding how severely to discipline players for improper on-ice conduct.
Citing a recent appeals court ruling against New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, the NHL Players Association said Bettman should not be allowed to restore a 20-game suspension of Calgary Flames defenseman Dennis Wideman for hitting a linesman, after an arbitrator cut the ban to 10 games.
The NHL had sued to revive the longer suspension on June 8, contending that the arbitrator reviewing the matter under the league's collective bargaining agreement was not "neutral," and ignored substantial evidence justifying the original ban.