Memo to Bettman: Banish Chris Simon

Last week, as the NHL trade deadline was approaching, I noticed the name Chris Simon headed from New York to Minnesota. My first reaction was "why hasn't this guy been kicked out of the league yet?" Simon is a 36-year-old hockey player, who possibly added something to the NHL a decade ago, but now is just a major blemish on the face of the NHL. In the last year, he has received separate suspensions of 25 and 30 games for on-ice incidents. Simon has always been known as a "goon" within the sport, even before these two most recent suspensions, and now that his actual hockey talent has completely faded away, there is nothing positive that he brings to the NHL. Hockey fans will be the first to tell you that they hate guys like Chris Simon for what they do to the reputation of the sport. The NHL only tends to get major coverage when there is a brutal on-ice attack or something negative to dwell on, and players like Chris Simon only detract from the league. It is time for Gary Bettman to take a stand and show players that this type of reckless and intentionally dangerous play will not be tolerated. With a player like Chris Simon, who has a track record of causing injuries to others (both intentionally and unintentionally), it is only a matter of time before he strikes again. I can only hope he will retire before that happens.