Wilson Ejected After Fight in Canada's 10-2 Olympic Win

In a rare display of fisticuffs at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, Canadian forward Tom Wilson was ejected from Sunday's preliminary round men's hockey game against France after fighting French defenseman Pierre Crinon late in the third period. The altercation occurred during Team Canada's 10-2 victory, marking the first fight in Olympic hockey since 1998 and highlighting the return of NHL players to international competition after a 12-year absence.

The incident stemmed from a hard elbow delivered by Crinon to the head of Canadian star Nathan MacKinnon earlier in the period. MacKinnon was slow to recover from the hit, which drew a two-minute minor penalty for Crinon. The French player apologized to MacKinnon on the ice shortly after. Wilson, watching from the bench, took exception to the play. When the lines shifted and the two players met again near the net with 6:59 remaining, Wilson initiated the fight by dropping his gloves. Crinon, standing 6-foot-5, responded with punches, wrestling Wilson to the ice in a brief but intense exchange.

Under International Ice Hockey Federation rules, which prohibit fighting unlike the NHL's more lenient approach, both players received...