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Golden Knights docked 2nd-round pick, John Tortorella fined $100K for breaking media rules

Sport

Golden Knights docked 2nd-round pick, John Tortorella fined $100K for breaking media rules
Sport

Sport

Golden Knights docked 2nd-round pick, John Tortorella fined $100K for breaking media rules

2026-05-16 05:25 Last Updated At:05:31

NEW YORK (AP) — The NHL docked the Vegas Golden Knights a second-round pick in next month's draft and fined coach John Tortorella $100,000 on Friday for violating media access rules after their series-clinching Game 6 victory at Anaheim on Thursday night.

Tortorella refused to speak to reporters after Vegas routed the Ducks 5-1 to move on to face Colorado in the Western Conference final. The Golden Knights also did not open their locker room in accordance with league and Players' Association-negotiated regulations.

The NHL in a statement announcing the punishment said the penalties for these “flagrant violations” come after previous warnings were issued to the Golden Knights. The team has been offered the opportunity to appeal to Commissioner Gary Bettman’s office in person at the league’s New York headquarters next week.

“The Golden Knights are aware of today's announcement from the NHL regarding the postgame media availability following Game 6 in Anaheim,” the team said in a statement posted to social media. “The organization will have no further comment.”

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

Vegas Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella speaks after the game win against the Utah Mammoth of Game 6 in the first round of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series, Friday, May 1, 2026, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Melissa Majchrzak)

Vegas Golden Knights head coach John Tortorella speaks after the game win against the Utah Mammoth of Game 6 in the first round of an NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoff series, Friday, May 1, 2026, in Salt Lake City. (AP Photo/Melissa Majchrzak)

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Tennessee man who goes by the moniker Chud the Builder and is known for posting racist videos to social media was given a $1.25 million preliminary bond on attempted murder and other charges on Friday.

Dalton Eatherly, 28, is accused of shooting another person in the middle of the day on Wednesday outside the Montgomery County Courthouse during an altercation.

An affidavit filed with the arrest warrant says that Eatherly and the other man “engaged in a verbal altercation” at about 1:19 p.m. “During this verbal altercation, Mr. Eatherly turned his body in a bladed stance ... and reached for his firearm located in his right jacket pocket. Thereafter, a physical altercation ensued.”

Eatherly fired, striking the other man multiple times. The man was taken by helicopter to a hospital in Nashville, where he underwent emergency surgery, according to the affidavit. Police have said the man was in stable condition after surgery. The hospital has declined to give out information about his condition, citing medical privacy laws.

The affidavit notes that there were “several innocent bystanders” outside the courthouse when Eatherly shot his gun. “Surveillance video of the incident shows a ricocheting projectile hitting nearby walls.” Audio recording and witness accounts of the shooting also indicate that Eatherly shot himself in the arm.

At an arraignment on Friday, prosecutors asked that he be held without bond until there can be a full hearing next week. Judge H. Reid Poland III declined that recommendation but set a high bond nonetheless, “based upon the fact of how many people were here in the courtyard or at the courthouse and the seriousness of these felonies.”

In addition to the attempted murder charge, Eatherly faces charges of employing a firearm during a dangerous felony, aggravated assault, and reckless endangerment with a deadly weapon.

Poland also noted that Eatherly had previously been released on bond in two other cases. He faces a harassment charge in Montgomery County from November. He was also charged last week in Nashville's Davidson County with theft of services, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.

An attorney who was appointed to represent Eatherly on the felony charges Friday, Jacob Fendley, responded to questions about the case with an email that does not address the charges but addresses “hateful phone calls and emails my office has been receiving.” Fendley said he has a history of service to people of all skin colors, and the idea that he or his staff are racists is “simply ridiculous.”

“The role of a criminal defense attorney is to represent people regardless of their race, religion, ideology, or allegations against them,” he wrote.

Eatherly, who is white, posts videos to social media where he tries to provoke Black passersby by using racial slurs and racist dog whistles. Although police have not responded to questions about the race of the person he shot, a witness described him as Black.

Eatherly was being held in the Montgomery County jail on Friday, according to jail records. A full bond hearing is scheduled on May 21, and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 26.

A Sheriff's deputy enters the Montgomery County Courts Center as they investigate a shooting outside the building, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Clarksville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

A Sheriff's deputy enters the Montgomery County Courts Center as they investigate a shooting outside the building, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Clarksville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

This photo provided by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department shows Dalton Eatherly in Nashville, Tenn., on Sunday, May 10, 2026, after his arrest. (Metropolitan Nashville Police via AP)

This photo provided by the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department shows Dalton Eatherly in Nashville, Tenn., on Sunday, May 10, 2026, after his arrest. (Metropolitan Nashville Police via AP)

Sheriff's deputies investigate a shooting scene outside the Montgomery County Courthouse, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Clarksville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Sheriff's deputies investigate a shooting scene outside the Montgomery County Courthouse, Wednesday, May 13, 2026, in Clarksville, Tenn. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

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