Sens owner calls Crosby a 'whiner beyond belief,' wants season-long suspension

One of the NHL's most vocal owners is going after arguably the league's best player.

Ottawa Senators chairman Eugene Melnyk took aim at Sidney Crosby during a radio interview Friday, on the morning after the Pittsburgh Penguins captain shattered Marc Methot's finger, forcing the Senators defenseman out for weeks.

Related: Crosby hacks off portion of Methot's finger

"You do anything that's almost a certain injury, and I think the only way to (discipline them) is you wipe the guy off the map for not one or two games ...(but) 10," Melnyk told TSN 1200. "How about a season(-long suspension) for a few of these guys?"

The Senators owner didn't backpedal from his plea for a heavy punishment.

"He takes my guy, I take your guy. That's my attitude," Melnyk said. "The guy that creates the injury should be sitting out ... for the rest of the season."

He wasn't done there.

"So that's the only way to do it. You hammer these guys. You take away their money because they all understand money," Melnyk said. "You simply say, 'You know what, you're done for 10 games and guess what, you guys are not going to get even close to the Stanley Cup if it's an elite player on the other side. There's no room for it in the NHL."

After speaking in general terms about star players (but clearly motivated by the Crosby incident), the Senators owner took a specific shot at the two-time Hart Trophy winner.

"We all know who he is, and the guy's just a whiner beyond belief and (if) you do this kind of stuff, I don't care who you are in the league, I don't care if you're the No. 1 player in the league. You should sit out a long time for this kind of crap."

Related - Crosby on Methot's injury: I was trying to get his stick

Melnyk said he believed the Senators' case was being made to the NHL on Friday morning, but deputy commissioner Bill Daly told ESPN's Pierre LeBrun that the league isn't looking into the matter.