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NHL suspends Jean-Francois Jacques for 8 total games for leaving bench to start a fight

Ryan Hollweg, J.F. Jacques

Phoenix Coyotes center Ryan Hollweg, left, brawls with Anaheim Ducks left wing J.F. Jacques during the third period of an NHL preseason hockey game in Anaheim, Calif., Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2011. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)

AP

No one escapes the ever-watchful eye of league disciplinarian Brendan Shanahan. Anaheim’s J.F. Jacques was the guy busted by the NHL this time around as he made a legal line change in a preseason game against Vancouver for the express purpose of starting a fight with Canucks forward Mike Duco in the waning minutes of their game.

While instigating a fight in the final five minutes earned Jacques at least a one game ban, Shanahan stepped things up severely suspending Jacques for the rest of the preseason and the first five games of the regular season, eight games in all. Jacques will give up $17,567.55 for the time he’ll be sitting out and that money goes to the Players’ Emergency Assistance Fund.

The suspension is already the sixth one handed down by Shanahan in the preseason as Jacques will join Pierre-Luc Letorneau-Leblond, Jody Shelley, James Wisniewski, Brad Staubitz, and Brad Boyes on Shanahan’s hit list. Shanahan is again showing no mercy in sitting players down who run afoul of the law and that no bad deed or illegal play will go unpunished.

If you’d like to see video of Shanahan’s explanation as to why Jacques is getting suspended so fiercely, you can check it out here: