 | This article needs additional citations for verification .(November 2015) |
 | This article needs to be updated.(December 2019) |
Operation Slapshot is the code name of an undercover police operation, spearheaded by New Jersey state police, against an illegal nationwide gambling ring.
The operation was made public on February 6, 2006. Rick Tocchet, an assistant coach for the Phoenix Coyotes, a team in the National Hockey League, and Janet Jones, the wife of ice hockey and NHL great Wayne Gretzky, were among those under investigation or indicted with charges pertaining to the operation. [1] Also under investigation was suspended state trooper James Harney, who was allegedly Tocchet's partner in the operation.
The investigation also referred to the possibility of an NHL team owner, half a dozen active NHL players, and other coaches and team staff members being involved in this investigation. [2] As of February 8, 2006, two more names were mentioned as people implicated by law enforcement officials: San Jose Sharks center Jeremy Roenick, and Toronto Maple Leafs center Travis Green. [3]
The ring was said to allegedly have ties to the Bruno-Scarfo crime family, which has a base of operations in and around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and southern New Jersey. [2]
On August 3, 2006, former New Jersey state trooper James Harney pleaded guilty to conspiracy, promoting gambling and official misconduct, and promised to help authorities with their case against Tocchet and others. Harney said that he and Tocchet were 50–50 partners in the betting ring. [4] Harney was sentenced to six years in prison on August 3, 2007. [5]
On December 1, 2006, James Ulmer, 41, of Swedesboro, New Jersey pleaded guilty to conspiracy and promoting gambling, and agreed to cooperate with authorities. [6]
On May 25, 2007, Tocchet pled guilty to conspiracy and promoting gambling and was placed on probation [7] for two years for his role in Operation Slapshot, and avoided jail time. He was allowed to return to active duty in February, provided he refrains from gambling in any way in the future. He must also submit himself to NHL-NHLPA doctors to see if he has an issue with compulsive gambling. [8]
The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and play at Mullett Arena in Tempe. They first played at America West Arena in downtown Phoenix from 1996 to 2003 and then played at Glendale's Gila River Arena from 2003 to 2022.
Jeremy Shaffer Roenick ( ROH-nik; born January 17, 1970) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played the majority of his career in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted 8th overall in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft by the Chicago Blackhawks, for whom he played from 1988 to 1996. Roenick subsequently played for the Phoenix Coyotes, Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings and San Jose Sharks over the course of his 20 NHL season career. He also represented Team USA in several international tournaments. On November 10, 2007, he became the third American-born player to score 500 goals. He is one of 46 players to have scored 500 goals, but he is one of five eligible players to not be a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. After retiring in 2009, Roenick joined NBC Sports as a hockey analyst from 2010-2020.
Craig MacTavish is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player, formerly an assistant coaching position with the St. Louis Blues. He played centre for 17 seasons in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins, Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, Philadelphia Flyers and St. Louis Blues, winning the Stanley Cup four times. He was the last NHL player not to wear a helmet during games.
The Genovese crime family, also sometimes referred to as the Westside, is an Italian-American Mafia crime family and one of the "Five Families" that dominate organized crime activities in New York City and New Jersey as part of the American Mafia. They have generally maintained a varying degree of influence over many of the smaller mob families outside New York, including ties with the Philadelphia, Patriarca, and Buffalo crime families.
Kerry Fraser is a hockey analyst, broadcaster and former senior referee in the National Hockey League. During his career, he called 1,904 regular season games, 12 Stanley Cup Finals, and over 261 Stanley Cup playoff games.
Janet Marie Gretzky is an American actress. She is married to retired ice hockey Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky.
Richard Tocchet is a Canadian professional ice hockey coach and former player. He is the head coach of the Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League (NHL). Playing as a right winger, he played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Los Angeles Kings, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals, and Phoenix Coyotes. He was the head coach of the NHL's Tampa Bay Lightning for two seasons and the Arizona Coyotes for four seasons. During the 2010 playoffs, he was an analyst on Flyers Postgame Live on Comcast SportsNet. In 2021, he became a studio analyst for the NHL on TNT.
The Jean Béliveau Trophy is awarded to the top regular season scorer of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The award is named after Quebec native Jean Béliveau, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Béliveau died on December 2, 2014 at the age of 83.
Ryan Gregory Malone nicknamed "Bugsy", is an American former professional ice hockey forward. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Pittsburgh Penguins, Tampa Bay Lightning and New York Rangers. In 2003, he became the first Pittsburgh-born and trained player to suit up for the Penguins in an NHL game.
The following is a chronicle of events during the year 2006 in ice hockey.
The Pittsburgh crime family, also known as the LaRocca crime family or Pittsburgh Mafia, is an Italian American Mafia crime family based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The LaRocca family is one of the original 26 mafia families in United States. In 2021, the boss Thomas "Sonny" Ciancutti died, he was also the last known made member of the family.
Matthew Madonna is a member of the Lucchese crime family who served as acting boss before being imprisoned in 2017.
Gregory Paw served as the Director of the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice from February 21, 2006 to June 20, 2008. Paw succeeded Vaughn McCoy as Director, and was succeeded as Director by Deborah Gramiccioni, with whom he had worked closely while she was a special assistant to the New Jersey Attorney General. Paw is now a partner in the law firm of Pepper Hamilton, practicing white collar criminal defense and corporate compliance in the firm's Princeton and Philadelphia offices.
The following is a chronicle of events during the year 2007 in ice hockey.
The 2005–06 Phoenix Coyotes season, was the franchise's 34th season overall, 27th season in the National Hockey League and tenth season in Phoenix. Retired player Wayne Gretzky was named coach. The Coyotes missed the playoffs for the third consecutive year.
Ronald Joseph Trucchio, also known as "Ronnie One Arm" is an American mobster who rose to the position of caporegime in the Gambino crime family of New York City.
The Lucchese crime family's New Jersey faction, also known as the Jersey Crew, is a powerful crew within the Lucchese crime family. The members operate throughout the Northern New Jersey area. During the 1970s into the late 1980s, the crew was led by Anthony Accetturo and his protégé Michael Taccetta. In 1987, Victor Amuso took over the family and began demanding a higher percentage of tribute from the crew. Accetturo refused and a war erupted between the New Jersey members and the New York members. This left brothers Michael and Martin Taccetta in charge of the crew as they tried to have Accetturo and his family murdered. In 1993, Accetturo defected and became a government witness. He helped convict Michael and Martin Taccetta. The crew was most recently controlled by Ralph Perna.
Robert J. Cleary is an American lawyer who has served as the United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey and for the Southern District of Illinois. He was the lead prosecutor in the Unabomber case. He is currently a partner at Proskauer Rose.
NHL Slapshot is EA Sports' first ice hockey video game on the Wii, released in 2010. It was the first game in the NHL series since NHL 2005 to receive an E rating, mainly because the game does not include fighting.
{{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link){{cite web}}: Cite uses generic title (help)