French defenseman Pierre Crinon has been banned by his own federation for the rest of the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics after fighting Canada’s Tom Wilson during a 10-2 loss on Sunday.

The play started when Crinon threw a high hit on Canadian star Nathan MacKinnon. Wilson quickly stepped in, and the two dropped the gloves. They traded punches before Crinon brought Wilson down to the ice, at one point driving him face-first during the takedown.

But the fight was not the only thing that stood out. As Crinon skated off, he taunted the Canadian crowd by cupping his hands to his ears and waving his arms, further fueling the tense atmosphere inside the arena.

Later, the French Hockey Federation announced that Crinon would be suspended for the rest of the Olympics. In its statement, the federation said the punishment was not for the fight itself, but for his “provocative behavior” as he left the ice, calling it a violation of the Olympic spirit.

Former NHL player and analyst Paul Bissonnette questioned the decision on social media.

“What a weird thing this is? They kicked him out of the tournament for this?” Bissonnette wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

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Unlike the NHL, where fighting usually results in a five-minute major penalty, International Ice Hockey Federation rules call for an automatic game misconduct, so both Wilson and Crinon were ejected.

The IIHF did not hand out any additional punishment beyond those ejections. On the other hand, Wilson came out of the duel unscathed, as he will not face any additional suspension.

France now turns to an elimination game against Germany on Tuesday, with the winner advancing to face Slovakia in the quarterfinals.

Meanwhile, Crinon will miss the qualification game against Germany due to his suspension and would also be unavailable if France advances.