GANGNEUNG, South Korea (AP) — Slava Voynov is at the Olympics despite his conviction for domestic abuse. In a way, he is at the Olympics because of it.
The defenseman remains indefinitely suspended from the National Hockey League over a 2014 incident that got him sentenced to 90 days in jail on a misdemeanor charge of corporal injury to a spouse.
Were he still in the league, he’d have to watch on TV as the Olympics hosts its first tournament without NHL players since 1994. Since he is no longer an NHL player, he is eligible and his experience as a two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Los Angeles Kings makes him crucial to the roster of “Olympic Athletes from Russia.