As was first reported by Damian Cristodero of the Tampa Bay Times, Tampa Bay Lightning left winger Ryan Malone was arrested Saturday morning for driving under the influence and possession of cocaine. According to the arrest report, the driving under the influence charge is a misdemeanor in the second degree charge while the possession of cocaine charge is a felony in the third degree.
While there are no other details of Malone’s arrest, Lightning general manager Steve Yzerman released a statement, saying:
We have been made aware of the situation concerning Ryan Malone this morning. Ryan will not travel with the team to Washington today but beyond that we cannot comment further at this time.
Malone was being held on $2,500 bond at the Hillsborough County Jail but was then released shortly before 10:00 AM Saturday.
This is a developing story but it will be interesting to see how it all unfolds. Malone has one more year left on his contract, and while he would be able to travel within the United States, foreigners cannot enter Canada with any type of alcohol conviction. In other words, he wouldn’t be able to play any Canadian teams in Canada.
You can view Ryan Malone’s arrest report here.
