Tippett gets one-game suspension for flipping puck
Peterborough native Owen Tippett was suspended for one game by the Ontario Hockey League after a puck flipping incident during a Dec. 7 game against the Oshawa Generals at the Paramount Fine Foods Centre in Mississauga.
Tippett, the assistant captain of the Mississauga Steelheads, used his stick to flip a foam puck up to a child after it had landed in front of him.
He was handed a game misconduct because the league bans players from intentionally shooting pucks over the glass.
Tippett served the suspension on Sunday, just before Tippett headed to the Canada national world junior team selection camp, which is continuing until Friday in Victoria, B.C.
Tippett was named to the 40man tryout roster along with Peterborough native Barrett Hayton, captain of the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds.
A 22-man roster is expected to be settled by Saturday for the IIHF World Junior Championship being held from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 in Vancouver and Victoria, B.C.
Last year, Canada won gold at the World Junior Hockey Championships, but Tippett wasn’t invited to the team’s final tryout camp, even though he had established himself as one of the most prolific scorers in the Ontario Hockey League.
Tippett, who was drafted by the Florida Panthers in the first round, 10th overall, of the 2017 NHL draft, played for Canada’s U18 at the world junior championships in 2015-16.
Tippett hopes he can use last year’s disappointment to help Canada triumph on the world stage, and he’s not going to take the opportunity for granted.
“It’s a different style of game and you’ve got to do whatever you can to make that team,” Tippett told the Mississauga News. “I’ll take all the criticisms I’ve gotten in the past and use them (to help me).”
Likely in his final OHL season before turning pro, Tippett has 19 goals and 33 points in 23 games with the Steelheads. While he’s relied on heavily for offence, the Panthers have told him to work on his defence to become a better two-way player in order to make it to the NHL.
He says he’s been working hard on that and feels he has come a long way. Steelheads coach and general manager James Richmond feels the same way and believes Tippett has a strong chance of making Team Canada.
“It’s totally up to him. Obviously the coaches there will look at him, but I think he’s one of the best players in Canada,” Richmond said. “If he goes and plays 200 feet — not too many guys can score like him and he’s a big, strong, fast guy — he should have a good chance.”
Tippett hopes to make it the fourth straight year someone from the Steelheads has been picked to play in the tournament.
“Especially last year when Mikey (McLeod) came back, everyone was curious about what the experience was like,” Tippett said. “You kind of get a little taste of it that way. It’s definitely an exciting time.”