Mark Bell (ice hockey)
Mark Bell is a Canadian ice hockey coach and a former professional ice hockey forward. Bell was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round of the 1998 NHL Entry Draft. In the NHL, Bell played for the Blackhawks, San Jose Sharks, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Anaheim Ducks. Later in his career, he played in Switzerland and Germany.
Playing career
Bell started playing hockey at the age of four years, and grew up admiring Wayne Gretzky and Doug Gilmour. He played four seasons in the minor Ontario Hockey League with the Ottawa 67's, and was part of the Memorial Cup championship in 1998–99.Chicago Blackhawks
He was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1998 NHL Entry Draft as the eighth overall pick, and scored his first goal against Patrick Roy. Bell's time with Chicago was moderately successful, forming a partnership with Tyler Arnason and Kyle Calder.Bell was a bronze medalist with Team Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships in 2000.
San Jose Sharks
In the summer of 2006, he was traded to the San Jose Sharks in a three-way deal involving Chicago and the Ottawa Senators Bell signed a US$6.5 million contract July 2006, which paid US$2 million for the first two years of the contract and US$2.5 million for the final year. He was initially placed on a line with Joe Thornton and Jonathan Cheechoo, however Bell never lived up to expectations and could not duplicate the numbers that he put up in Chicago, and so was demoted to the fourth line, often being a healthy scratch.Toronto Maple Leafs
He was acquired by the Toronto Maple Leafs via trade at the 2007 NHL Entry Draft on June 22, 2007. After becoming part of the Leafs, Bell was then suspended the first 15 games for his DUI conviction. On October 6, 2008, Bell was placed on waivers which cleared the way for him being assigned to Toronto's AHL affiliate, the Toronto Marlies.New York Rangers
On February 25, 2009, Bell was placed on re-entry waivers and claimed by the New York Rangers. He was then assigned to the Rangers' AHL team, the Hartford Wolf Pack.Switzerland
He was invited to Philadelphia Flyers training camp on September 2 and signed on October 6, 2009 with Nationalliga A club Kloten Flyers from Switzerland. In November 2010, the Kloten Flyers announced that Bell would not receive a new contract after two seasons with the club. During this time, Bell played for Team Canada at the 2009 and 2010 Spengler Cup.Anaheim Ducks
On July 20, 2011, Bell signed a one-year contract to return to North America with the Anaheim Ducks of the NHL. On January 20, 2012, Bell was called up from their AHL affiliate the Syracuse Crunch, marking the first time in almost four years that he has played in the NHL. After five games with the Ducks he was reassigned to the Crunch for the remainder of the season.Germany
On September 19, 2012, Bell ventured to Europe signing a one-year deal with the Iserlohn Roosters of the German DEL. After not being able to renegotiate his contract with the Roosters, Bell signed with the Eisbären Berlin prior to the 2013–14 season. In the late stages of the 2014-15 season, Bell sustained a concussion which sidelined him for a while, followed by a longterm ankle injury. These health issues kept him from playing for almost one year, he made his comeback in late January 2016. At the end of the 2015-16 season, Bell retired from professional ice hockey.Coaching career
In July 2016, Bell joined the coaching staff of the St. Marys Jr. ‘B’ Lincolns as an assistant.Legal trouble
During the 2006 Labor Day weekend, in Milpitas, California, Bell's rented Toyota Camry was traveling an estimated 100 km per hour when it rear-ended a pickup truck at a stop sign driven by Jose Luis Villafana, the latter's vehicle being hit 15 metres up a steep hill and wrapped it around a telephone pole. The victim was uninsured and unlicensed and suffered multiple head, back and leg injuries in the crash. Bell was arrested shortly after walking away from the accident. He blew.201 in a breathalyzer test about a half-hour after the accident, and a blood test revealed a blood-alcohol level of 0.15, considerably higher than the legal limit of 0.08.Bell was charged with hit and run and driving under the influence. Both are felony offences. His arraignment was set for January 3, 2007. Bell pleaded no contest to drunk driving causing injury and hit-and-run on August 14, 2007. Prior to sentencing, Bell had to pay restitution, including medical bills and the cost of the vehicle to Villafana, who has also filed a civil suit seeking "unlimited damages" which was later settled out of court. He was to serve six months in jail after completing the 2007–08 hockey season but later told to work in a California jail which he did from June 2, 2008 to August 15, 2008.
In addition to his conviction, Bell was placed in Stage 2 of the NHL/NHLPA Substance Abuse Program and was suspended for 15 games without pay by the NHL on September 12, 2007. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman justified the suspension, saying "Playing in the National Hockey League is a privilege, and with that privilege comes a corresponding responsibility for exemplary conduct off the ice as well as on it". The NHLPA disagreed, saying "there is no legitimate purpose served by adding a substantial league disciplinary suspension to the severe sanctions that have already been imposed". Leafs manager John Ferguson, Jr., who drew criticism for the trade, had anticipated that Bell would face some sort of suspension, however based upon past precedent they did not expect it to be so lengthy. This had been suggested as a sign that the NHL was imposing stricter discipline for off-ice antics of players, after Michael Vick was expelled from the NFL as a result of his conviction for running a dog-fighting ring.
Bell has stated that as a result of the accident, realizing that his career was slipping away because of his irresponsibility, he has changed his lifestyle and has been sober since then, saying "Now, every day I wake up I realize I'm living a dream. It's taken a while for me to understand that. Now that I have, I'm going to grab it. My fun now is at the rink".