U.S. court upholds reduction of Wideman suspension

NEW YORK - A U.S. district court upheld an arbitrator's ruling that reduced Calgary Flames defenseman Dennis Wideman's suspension for knocking a linesman to the ice in a game last season.

The NHL says in a statement released Wednesday night that it disagrees with the court's decision but understands the standard needed to overturn the decision. The league says it is ready to turn the page.

Wideman was suspended 20 games for hitting linesman Don Henderson and knocking him down during a game against the Nashville Predators on Jan. 27, 2016.

Commissioner Gary Bettman upheld that suspension, but neutral discipline arbitrator James Oldham ruled that Wideman did not intend to injure Henderson and reduced the suspension to 10 games.

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