Versteeg hit with one-game suspension

Apparently when Wayne Gretzky squwalks, the NHL listens.

A day after Gretzky complained about Kris Versteeg fighting 19-year-old Coyotes rookie Kyle Turris with two seconds to play in Sunday's 7-1 Blackhawks win, Versteeg was suspended one game by the league for instigating the scrap.

It's an automatic suspension when a player instigates a fight in the final five minutes of a game, but each case is reviewed and many times the suspension is rescinded.

Versteeg's suspension stuck and he must sit out Wednesday's game against Ottawa at the United Center.

Hawks coach Joel Quenneville also was slapped with a $10,000 fine.

"I don't want to see a kid get grabbed out of a pile in a 7-1 hockey game and take a beating," said Gretzky, who also challenged his players to remember the incident the next time the Hawks and Coyotes play on Jan. 6 in Arizona.

Versteeg said after the game that Turris challenged him to fight, which the Coyotes disputed.