This is Part 2 of a three-column series. Here are the five memorable fan-athlete altercations part 2.
3. Lincoln Kennedy Punches a Broncos Fan
The rivalry between the Denver Broncos and the Oakland Los Angeles Oakland soon-to-be Las Vegas Raiders is well documented. Both were charter members of the American Football League and since their first meeting on October 2, 1960, the two franchises have been inseparable. There have been some wild games throughout their sixty-year rivalry, but probably the wildest occurred on November 22, 1999.
It was a snowy Monday night game that saw the Broncos win a back-and-forth affair in which Denver won 27-21 in overtime. Throughout the game, unruly Bronco fans threw snowballs at the Raiders’ sideline. The gaiety continued after the game ended and snowballs pelted the Raiders as they exited into the locker room. Two Raiders would retaliate; CB Charles Woodson hit a female fan in the face with a snowball. OL Lincoln Kennedy was hit in the face with a snowball and had his nose cut. In reaction, he went into the crowd to accost the fan and following some exchange of words, Kennedy punched the fan.
After the game, Woodson had a warrant placed for his arrest while Kennedy filed charges against the fan who hit him with a snowball. Kennedy commented by saying, “I got hit in the eye with a snowball. I went up to the person who did it and lost my composure. At that point, I got hit by more snowballs and was confronted by rowdy and drunk fans. I filed charges. It’s not something I want to do, but something had to be done about it.”
2. Mike Milbury Beats a Rangers Fan with His Own Shoe
If you have ever watched the 1977 cult-classic “Slap Shot,” you remember the crowd fight scene in Hyannisport. A Presidents’ fan threw his keys and hit one of the Hanson brothers after scoring a goal. The brothers then climb the boards and into the crowd, beating anyone and everyone they can get their hands on. Two years after the movie’s release, life imitated art in a game between the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers.
Mike Milbury has worn many hats in an NHL career that has spanned five decades. He currently serves as an analyst on NBC during its NHL coverage. But on December 23, 1979, Milbury became part of an incident that earned him the nickname “Mad Mike.” Upon their 4-3 win over the Rangers, the Bruins found themselves in a game-ending scuffle. A Ranger fan went over the boards and grabbed the stick of Bruins F Stan Jonathan. That prompted Bruins enforcer Terry O’Reilly to jump the boards and go after the fan. Peter McNab and Milbury followed O’Reilly to the bewilderment of the Rangers watching from the ice.
Milbury went to help McNab and grabbed John Kaptain, a Ranger fan from New Jersey, and took him down. He then took Kaptain’s shoe off his foot and hit Kaptain with the shoe (at the 1:59 mark). After Milbury finished mauling Kaptain, cooler heads in the Madison Square Garden crowd prevailed. In the aftermath of the incident, O’Reilly was suspended for eight games and McNab and Milbury were each suspended for six. All were fined $500. The league then required arenas have higher plexiglass boards to prevent similar future incidents. (Apparently, that didn’t help Domi in Philadelphia nearly 22 years later.)
