On Sunday, Flyers forward Arron Asham accused Penguins forward Matt Cooke of biting his hand during a scrum in the third period of Pittsburgh’s 2-1 victory. On Monday, Cooke flatly denied that accusation, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
"No," Cooke told the paper when asked if he bit Asham. "There was a scrum, and I went in and grabbed [Flyers forward Scott] Hartnell and had a hold of him. All I knew was that someone was the third man in the pile, grabbing me, scratching my face, digging and clawing the third or fourth time. Then, I found out [who] later, [Asham] proceeded to rip my helmet off and punch me in the back of the head four or five times. And I have the welts to prove it."
Cooke also responded to Asham calling him a “chicken” for not fighting when Asham squared up to him.
"It was a 1-1 hockey game with 10 minutes left," Cooke told the Post-Gazette. "I'm sure I'm not the first one who said no to fighting him, so whatever. He's allowed to say whatever he wants. It's a free country. It doesn't bother me at all. I think I've proven myself. This year, I've fought three times already and if I have to do that, I will. But not at times when we need to play."
The NHL did not punish Cooke for the incident because there was no video evidence showing the alleged bite, the article said.
