Maple Leafs forward Mark Bell was suspended indefinitely without pay by the NHL after last month’s plea of no contest to drunken-driving and hit-and-run charges.
He will serve six months in a California jail at the end of next season. Bell, 27, a former Blackhawk, will need approval from the NHL and the players union to be reinstated after consultation with program doctors.
Bell was arrested in September 2006 after his sedan rear-ended a pickup truck in Milpitas, Calif. At that time, he played for the San Jose Sharks.
*Pierre Turgeon is expected to end his 19-season NHL career by announcing his retirement Wednesday.
The 38-year-old unrestricted free agent was expected to retire after groin and calf injuries limited him to only 17 games last season with the Colorado Avalanche.
The top overall draft pick by the Buffalo Sabres in 1987, he went on to amass 515 goals and 1,327 points in 1,294 career games with the Sabres, New York Islanders, Montreal, St. Louis, Dallas and Colorado.
*Panthers defenseman Jay Bouwmeester pleaded guilty in Edmonton to one count of impaired driving. Judge Michael Allen fined him $1,000 Tuesday and banned him from driving for a year.
