Milan Lucic will be forced to pay up $5,000 after the Bruins forward was fined by the league Friday for making an obscene gesture at fans in Montreal near the end of the Canadiens' 6-4 victory Thursday.
The Boston Bruins forward taunted the crowd and then mimicked raising the Stanley Cup while entering the penalty box.
Lucic, who had been roundly booed throughout the game by Habs fans, was upset with a penalty he received for boarding Montreal Canadiens' defenceman Alexei Emelin, who turned his back against the left boards just before Lucic hurtled him into the boards.
Emelin was not injured on the play but the penalty eliminated a chance for the Bruins to notch a tying goal as they were forced to defend on a penalty kill with under two minutes left to play.
Lucic did not speak to the media after the game.
Lucic has not been well-liked in Montreal since last year's playoffs, when he threatened Dale Weise in the handshake line after the Canadiens eliminated the Bruins in seven games.
He picked up a boarding penalty with 80 seconds left in Thursday night's game, then was given a misconduct for complaining to the officials. He also flexed his muscles to the Bell Centre crowd from the penalty box.
Habs comment
Montreal Coach Michel Therrien applauded the decision.
“I didn’t see the gesture but I heard about it. The league did what it had to do. As a professional athlete you have to respect the fans and the sport. Respect and humility are very important.”
He said that such behaviour would not be tolerated on the Canadiens.
“It has never happened and Ihope it never happens. If it occurs we’ll have a long talk with the party involved,” he said.
Habs defenceman P.K. Subban also said that he didn’t see gesture.
“Regardless of whether I saw it or not, there are 50 cameras in the building that will capture everything that happens. We as players are responsible for our actions. Whatever you do is going to be a reflection of yourself and your organization, players are going to be held accountable for their actions, you have got to know that," he said.
