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Nasreddine suspended two games
Fri. Dec. 11, 1998.

Montreal Canadiens defenceman Alain Nasreddine was suspended for two games and fined $1,000 Friday for dragging linesman Wayne Bonney to the ice during a fight with Keith Tkachuk of the Phoenix Coyotes.

``I didn't mean to push the linesman,'' said Nasreddine. ``I was falling and down and I grabbed onto him.''

Bonney fell over the two players as they skirmished at 3:56 of the third period of the Coyotes 4-2 win on Wednesday night.

Nasreddine, who was to miss games Friday night in Dallas and tonight in Nashville, was handed cross-checking, fighting and game misconduct penalties on the play.

The Montreal native said he went after Tkachuk, who was also ejected for instigating the fight, after being cross-checked on the nose by the Phoenix forward.

An NHL statement said Nasreddine was suspended for ``physically demeaning'' Bonney and that the two-game penalty would cost him $3,906.25 US in lost salary.

The Canadiens acquired Nasreddine on Nov. 16 in a six-player swap with Chicago.