Wintry mix spreads across Minnesota

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Minnesota Wild assistant coach Darryl Sydor has pleaded guilty to charges that he drove drunk while his 12-year-old son was in the car over the summer. 


Sydor was sentenced Monday to 60 days in jail, which will be staggered across four years, although he could avoid most of that jail time by staying sober. 


Attorney Ryan Pacyga said Sydor will serve two weekends in the Anoka County workhouse immediately. Sydor will appear before the judge every October for the next three years to assess his progress.


"If we show that he's sober and working a good recovery program, the judge can forgive him those 15 days each of those years, which means essentially he won't have any more jail to do at all after these two weekends if he's doing what he's supposed to be doing," Pacyga said.  

 arrested in August on Highway 65 in Fridley, 

after police received reports that he was driving erratically. He told the officer that pulled him over that he was driving his son to a hockey tournament, according to the criminal complaint. Authorities said he submitted to a blood-alcohol test at the police station that came back at .30, which is almost four times the legal limit.  


Sydor enrolled in the National Hockey League's inpatient substance abuse treatment center about two days after he was released from jail, Pacyga said. He's also enrolled in an intensive outpatient treatment program in the Twin Cities, has agreed to submit to random urine tests through the league and attends Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. 


"He really feels bad about the position that he put his child, his family, the Minnesota Wild and the community in just by driving that way that night," Pacyga said. "I remind him that the best thing you can do is be sure you have a good program of recovery and be the best man you can for all of those people going forward, and that's what he's concentrating on now." 

In a statement, Sydor thanked the Minnesota Wild and his family for their support.  

"Recovery is giving me the opportunity to redeem myself to all I have hurt," Sydor said. "I am putting recovery first for myself and my family, and with that, everything else will fall into place."

Sydor is still on leave from the team, Pacyga said, but the assistant coach has been in talks with the team and his position has not been eliminated. 

The team said in a statement that they'll continue to support Sydor's recovery, and that "his return to the organization will be addressed at a later date."

Sydor had served as an assistant coach with the Wild for four seasons and previously worked for the Houston Aeros. He played 18 seasons in the NHL, winning Stanley Cups with the Dallas Stars and Tampa Bay Lightning.

Crime, Law and Justice

Sports

Jon Collins

Author

Sydor was sentenced Monday to 60 days in jail, which will be staggered across four years, although he could avoid most of that jail time by staying sober.

Wild assistant coach Darryl Sydor pleads guilty to drunken driving

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