Penguins Fan Steals Puck From Young Child In Outrageous Scene
Photo via Valdis Skudre/Shutterstock

Penguins Fan Steals Puck From Young Child In Outrageous Scene

An altercation broke out at an NHL game when an older Penguins fan grabbed a puck from a young supporter. The situation escalated and it almost came to blows.

Videos by Wide Open Country

In an interview with CBS, however, Kevin Acklin, Pittsburgh Penguins President of Business Operations explained the incident. Fan recordings show the second half, where it got really heated.

On Sunday, the Penguins were facing off against the Lightning. It was the second period, and the teams were tied 1-1. As Acklin explained it, a puck had got caught in the netting. Two fans went to retrieve it.

A young fan shook the glass, allowing the puck to fall. Deciding to swoop in and steal the boy's thunder, an older fan reached for the puck and grabbed it before the kid could. A classless act. Although the old man was technically the first to reach it, the kid had already initiated the effort to retrieve the puck.

Acklin said the fans saw what had transpired, and began booing him. Ignoring them, he gave the puck to his granddaughter. That's when a partner of one of the Penguins players walked over to the dejected young fan and gave him a puck herself.

A viral video of the incident shows events from that point forward, and how it heated up.

Older Penguins Fan Yells At Child After Stealing His Puck

The video starts off with showing the partner giving the fan the puck, where everyone hugs and the crowd cheers. The boy even reaches his arms out in triumph. It was all going so well, until the thieving granddad returned.

"The grandfather got up and started getting into it with the fans around them," Acklin said.

As the crowd booed, the granddad started arguing with the mother. It's not clear what they were saying or why he thought it necessary to argue with them. After all, he got to keep the puck he swiped from them.

Whatever he said really upset the mother of the child, as after shouting at him, she pulled back a punch.

"At that point, it sort of got out of hand and there were some hand gestures, and the older gentleman was escorted out of the building," Acklin said. He also confirmed that they reached out to both families, and both thought they were in the right.