NEW YORK (AP) -Maple Leafs forward Mark Bell was suspended for 15 games without pay Wednesday by the NHL after his plea last month of no contest to drunken driving and hit-and-run charges. ``Playing in the National Hockey League is a privilege, and with that privilege comes a corresponding responsibility for exemplary conduct off the ice as well as on it,'' commissioner Gary Bettman said. Bell is in Stage 2 of the NHL's substance abuse program. Toronto opens training camp Thursday. Bell was arrested in September 2006 after his sedan rear-ended a pickup truck in Milpitas, Calif., in the San Jose foothills. The Maple Leafs acquired Bell in June along with goaltender Vesa Toskala in a trade with the San Jose Sharks.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. |
