Lightning fan assaulted at Madison Square Garden, Rangers fan arrested, charged
A Tampa Bay Lightning fan was assaulted in at Madison Square Garden after the Bolts' 3-1 win over the hometown Rangers. The assault took place on the concourse on the way out of the famous arena when an unsuspecting fan was celebrating the win, walking with his head held high, arms up in victory, just behind an unruly Rangers fan who took it upon himself to ruin the party with a stiff left hook.
The Tampa fan lay motionless for several minutes, as scores of Rangers fans came to his aid and called for medical attention. Fortunately, the victim of the attack re-gained consciousness and did not want wish to go to the hospital.
As for the attacker, James Anastasio of Staten Island, he was arrested this morning and faces 6 charges; 2 counts of assault, 2 counts of disorderly conduct, and 2 counts of harassment, per Evan Axelbank of Fox 13 News.
It's a pretty sad state of affairs that fans cannot attend games in a rival market without facing the potential threat of a violent altercation. I get it. Fandom involves emotion. Emotion sometimes overrides a person's better judgement. All the more reason to learn to show some restraint - especially if a boil-over can result in someone being knocked out on a hard tile floor and the other person facing prison time.
