Report: Drug testing part of new NHL deal
TORONTO - The NHL is set to introduce a new drug-testing policy with stiff penalties for players who test positive for performance-enhancing substances, The Canadian Press reported Thursday.
Under the new collective bargaining agreement between the league and the union, which still needs ratification, a league source told CP that players would be subject to a minimum of two drug tests a year without advance warning. A first-time offender would receive a 20-game suspension, a 60-game suspension would be given to a repeat offender, and a player would face a permanent ban from the NHL if caught a third time.
On Wednesday, the 301st day of the NHL lockout, the league and the players' association agreed in principle on a new six-year pact. The deal is expected to be ratified by both sides next week.
No details will be released by either side until the agreement has been approved.
NHL commissioner Gary Bettman and players' association executive director Bob Goodenow suggested the league and union would introduce such a drug policy after they appeared before a U.S. congressional hearing on steroid use in May.
Previously, only players that voluntarily entered the league's substance-abuse program were subject to testing. There has never been a testing policy for performance-enhancing drugs.
The NFL has increased from two to six the number of random offseason tests a player can face. A first positive test draws a four-game suspension for a player, and a second earns a six-game suspension.
Baseball banned steroids in September 2002 and instituted mandatory 10-day suspensions this season. Commissioner Bud Selig has suggested that starting in 2006, major league players be given 50-game suspensions for a first positive test for steroids, 100-game penalties for a second positive test and lifetime bans for a third.
The NBA's new collective bargaining agreement increases penalties for steroid violators, from five to 10 games for a first offense, 25 games for a second, one year for a third offense and a lifetime ban for a fourth.
