The Los Angeles County district attorney’s office isn’t quite ready to file charges against Kings defenseman Slava Voynov. According to the L.A. Times, the D.A. wants “additional follow-up” from Redondo Beach police before deciding whether to do so.
It’s not clear what the D.A. wants to be followed up, but Voynov’s lawyer, Craig Renetzky, see the development as a “positive sign” for his client, who was arrested Monday on allegations of domestic violence. Yesterday, Renetzky claimed Voynov “never hit the woman.”
Still, Redondo Beach police remain convinced they were right to arrest Voynov. “There was definitely a domestic violence incident that occurred and I believe the arrest was appropriate,” a spokesman for the department told The Hockey News. “Therefore, there is a necessity for us to prepare a case and present it to the District Attorney’s office. What, if anything, happens at the District Attorney’s office will dictate where we go from here.”
A court date has been set for Dec. 1.
A few more bits of information from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and his weekly 30 Thoughts column:
3. At this time, Voynov is suspended with pay, staying on the Kings’ cap. There is a chance Los Angeles receives salary relief if this takes time, as the NHL has “reserved the right” to re-visit the situation.
4. Depending on how this goes, we could see the first test of a new power given to Commissioner Gary Bettman in the 2013 CBA. The section “Discipline for Off-Ice Conduct” reads as follows: “Whenever the Commissioner determines that a Player has violated a League Rule applicable to Players (other than Rules subjecting the Player to potential on-ice discipline), or has been guilty of conduct (whether during or outside the playing season) that is detrimental to or against the welfare of the League or the game of hockey, he may discipline such Player in any or all of the following respects: a) by expelling or suspending such Player for a definite or indefinite period; b) by cancelling any SPC that such Player has with any Member Club.” In a worst-case scenario, Bettman could void Voynov’s contract, which has almost $22 million remaining. There is an appeal process.
Related: Daly says that facts made for ‘fairly easy decision’ to suspend Voynov