Dustin Penner takes on TMZ, MMA gym-owner over alleged assault (Video)
It’s been a while since we’ve heard from former-Duck/Oiler/King/Duck/Capital and pancake enthusiast, Dustin Penner. The two-time Stanley Cup champion has recently replaced in his skates for turntables going by the nickname “Pendemic.”
Frequently the lightning rod for controversy, Penner found himself in the negative spotlight once again. TMZ Sports published the following video allegedly showing Penner acting as repo man and muscle inside a gym committing assault.
(Perhaps we’re just jaded hockey fans here, but what part of that was considered assault? Penner – who is in mid-season “dad-bod” shape – scrummed like this regularly in the NHL.)
Here’s the version of the story reported by TMZ Sports:
Dustin Penner — former hockey star for the Ducks and Kings — is accused of assaulting a local gym manager … but cops say it’s just a civil dispute over money.
Here’s what allegedly went down — an Orange County gym that holds kickboxing classes for kids got rolled by 6 guys and a German Shepherd back in December. The crew made off with everything — punching bags, floor mats, boxing dummies — and TMZ obtained surveillance video of the incident.
Sources connected to the Orange County gym say Penner was one of the guys who made off with all the gear. In the video you can see the 2-time Stanley Cup winner squaring off with a manager of the gym.
Penner tells TMZ he was just helping a buddy repo the gear because the gym had missed payments on the equipment.
But our gym sources insist they’ve paid in full, and they consider it a robbery. Cops disagree, and tell us they’ve decided it’s a civil matter, not criminal.
Penner was not pleased with TMZ’s recounting of the incident. The always effervescent forward proceeded to plead his case over social media with a series of tweets expressing his side. If you love ‘Making a Murderer,’ buckle up for Penner’s ‘Making a Repo-Man’ (sans Emlio Estevez).
Did you catch all that?
In brief, Penner pleads he was merely helping a friend get back his stuff that was rightfully owed to him. According to Penner, TMZ showed a chopped up version of an 18 minute video. When the cops saw the full video, they didn’t arrest anyone, and referred the matter to civil court. After a quick check of the Orange County Superior Court, no criminal or civil cases popped up in relation to either MMA gyms, business owners or Penner himself.
While assassinating the character of gym-manager/instructor Nick Moghaddam (assuming he’s the blue-suited blurred out face in the video), Penner evokes the name of legendary Zoolander villain, Mugatu.
Using the piano key necktie reference is aces in our book; however, he missed a golden opportunity to drop one of the greatest movie lines ever to describe the situation, “I FEEL LIKE I’M TAKING CRAZY PILLS.”
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Jen Neale is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at [email protected] or follow her on Twitter! Follow @MsJenNeale_PD.
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