Grievance Turned Down

Alexei Yashin’s grievance against the Ottawa Senators has been dismissed, dashing the center’s hopes to be declared a free agent.

Yashin, a 22-year-old Russian, remains under contract to the Senators. He has refused to play for Ottawa this season, and set off a furor when he played four games for Moscow’s Red Army team in the Russian League this fall, violating the International Ice Hockey Federation’s agreement to honor NHL contracts.

Defenseman Kevin Hatcher of the Dallas Stars was suspended four games and fined $1,000 by the NHL for slashing Colorado’s Claude Lemieux in a game Sunday night.