LA Kings’ Voynov Pleads No Contest in Domestic Abuse Case

Los Angeles Kings defenseman Slava Voynov has pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor stemming from a domestic violence incident with his wife after a Halloween party.

Voynov entered the plea Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court to a count of corporal injury to a spouse.

Under terms of the plea deal, he was sentenced to a 90-day jail term and three years of probation. The plea averts a trial on a felony count.

The Russian Olympian had been charged with corporal injury to a spouse with great bodily injury after an argument at a party attended by other Kings players.

Prosecutors say Voynov choked and hit his wife and pushed her into a TV in their Redondo Beach bedroom. A cut over her eye required eight stitches.

The Kings issued a statement Thursday afternoon: "We believe the legal system has effectively resolved this matter and the punishment is fair and just. Any act of domestic violence is unacceptable. As an organization, the prevention of domestic violence and the education of our players and employees is of paramount importance. We will continue to actively develop and implement a strategy to deliver this message. We remain steadfast in our support of the National Hockey League as they now begin their own investigative process. Until that is complete we will withhold further comment."

The two-time Stanley Cup champ was indefinitely suspended by the NHL after his arrest and missed the final 76 games of the regular season while the case was pending. It was one of the longest suspensions in NHL history and came at a time when professional sports leagues and teams were criticized for lax punishment for violence outside the arena of competition.