French Olympic Hockey Players Rip Decision To Suspend Teammate Who Wailed On Tom Wilson
France was elminated from the tournament on Tuesday after a loss to Germany
France's men's hockey team has officially been knocked out of the 2026 Winter Olympics after a 5-1 quarterfinal loss to Germany.
Not surprising at all, given that France is far from one of the world's hockey powers, but the team sure did get people talking.
Or, at least one player did.
READ: IOC SCRAMBLES TO FIX DARK BOARDS THAT HOSED TEAM USA IN THE GROUP STAGE
That player is Pierre Crinon, and he plays for one of the best-named teams in all of hockey, Grenoble's Brûleurs de Loups, which means "Wolf Burners" (the logo is incredible).
He dropped the mitts with Washington Capitals and Team Canada tough guy Tom Wilson toward the end of France's 10-2 group stage loss.
Ryan Reaves once reportedly referred to himself as the solution to the New York Rangers' Tom Wilson problem, but it turns out that was Pierre Crinon.
Who knew?
Crinon not only got the heave-ho for the fight, but France's hockey federation took the unusual step of suspending him for the entire rest of the Games.
Though, realistically, they never really had a shot to get past the Germans.
After the elimination, some French players voiced frustration with their team for the decision.
"We are a big family: When we come together, we come as brothers, and we just got rid of one of our brothers, so it’s a joke from the French Committee Olympic," goalie Antoine Keller said, per TSN. "We need this player.
"We needed him today, and they just take it from us for something that just, like, happens every week in any hockey game, so I think that’s a joke.
French D-man Hugo Gallet suggested the decision may have been retribution for an incident from earlier this season when Crinon punched a goalie in a French league game. That earned him a seven-game suspension.
"Honestly, it’s a little bit frustrating for our own federation to suspend him," Gallet said. "I’m behind him. We needed him. He is a big part of our team, and they took a really good player from us."
Crinon has just 9 points in 29 games this season with Grenoble (and, perhaps unsurprisingly, 66 PIMs). So, could he have helped France overcome that 5-1 deficit?
Probably not.
However, the French went into that game clearly unhappy with the way the situation was managed, and that sure didn't help its cause either.