A top Islanders prospect was suspended for two games after a dustup with a fan.
Kashawn Aitcheson, the 17th overall pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, was handed the ban by the Ontario Hockey League after he was caught throwing water at a fan who appeared to be chastising his Barrie Colts teammates as they came off the ice after a shootout loss to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds on Saturday.
The game was particularly contentious after the Colts let a 3-1 lead slip away before Greyhounds forward Marco Mignosa taunted Barrie after he scored the shootout winner, drawing both teams onto the ice before things calmed down.
As the Colts exited the ice, a fan in a red jersey and backward hat was shouting at the visiting Barrie players before Aitcheson flung water at the individual using his bottle.
It wasn’t clear if anything the fan said was directly aimed at Aitcheson.
The “interacting with a spectator,” as the OHL described it, was enough to earn him a two-game ban.
The OHL’s rule book states that “any player or non-playing Club personnel who physically interferes with the spectators, becomes involved in an altercation with a spectator, or throws any object at a spectator, shall automatically incur a game misconduct penalty and the Referee shall report all such infractions to the Commissioner who shall have full power to impose such further penalty as he shall deem appropriate.”
The ban will see Aitcheson miss games against Saginaw on Thursday and Peterborough on Saturday, and curtails the defenseman’s seven-game point streak.
Aitcheson also had a six-game goal streak snapped on Saturday.
The 19-year-old has been the top offensive defenseman in the OHL, leading the circuit in goals for blueliners (15) and sitting second in points among defensemen (24).
Prior to the draft, Aitcheson was compared to former Rangers defenseman Jacob Trouba.
Islanders star rookie Matthew Schaefer described Aitcheson as “a great guy to have on your team right there. You don’t want to play against him, that’s for sure.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
