NEW YORK — The NHL fined the Toronto Maple Leafs an
undisclosed amount after ruling that coach Ron Wilson was guilty of tampering
when he expressed interest in Vancouver Canucks forwards Henrik and Daniel Sedin
before they reached free agency.
NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly announced the penalty
Wednesday in a news release. Wilson made reference to the Canucks twins during
an interview when they were still under contract with the Canucks. Both players
reached new deals to stay with Vancouver.
A separate charge by the Canucks against the Maple Leafs
was dismissed by the NHL.
Vancouver general manager Mike Gillis was upset after a
recent Leafs TV segment showed Toronto GM Brian Burke talking about a rumored
Vancouver-Tampa Bay trade. Burke said Alex Burrows and Kevin Bieksa could be
heading to the Lightning, but the deal never happened.
Calling those actions "unfortunate and inappropriate,"
Daly said that didn't constitute a tampering offense under league rules. He
warned the Leafs against doing something similar in the future.
The NHL hopes this will end a story that gained momentum
after Gillis discussed it on a Vancouver radio station earlier this week.
"Both (teams) have been instructed to refrain from
further public comment of any kind relating to these matters." Daly said in the
statement. "From the league's perspective, this matter is closed. We will make
no further comment."