from Lance Pugmire of the LA Times,
Ryan Getzlaf said he was not encouraged by a Ducks official to stage the team practice he arranged Friday during the NHL’s mandatory holiday dead period.
The NHL is investigating the practice because it happened during a time that was negotiated through the collective-bargaining agreement as a mandatory three-day break.
A league spokesman said the NHL wants to know whether Getzlaf acted on his own or was urged by anyone in the organization to gather the players.
Getzlaf, the Ducks’ captain who ranks second in the NHL with 30 assists, said Tuesday that he informed Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau about the Friday practice before it happened.
“He [Getzlaf] said that’s what he wanted to do, and I said, ‘OK, fine,’ ” Boudreau said. “To this day, I don’t know what time they skated, don’t know how many guys were there. I’m glad they did, but it was all Ryan’s idea.”
Getzlaf said he rented ice for teammates “because I felt I needed to skate. We had [children] on the ice, very informal, we kind of putted around for 20 minutes.”
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