Breaking: Austin Watson's girlfriend releases a stunning statement.

The National Hockey League made headlines last month when they issued a massive suspension to Nashville Predators forward Austin Watson following an incident of domestic violence that is alleged to have occurred between Watson himself and the mother of his child, Jenn Guardino. 

At the time of the announcement the news was met with universal approval as it was refreshing to see a North American sports league take a harsh stance against domestic violence after it has so often been swept under the rug in the past. Earlier this week however a neutral arbitrator ruled that the NHL had overstepped it's jurisdiction by issuing the 27 game ban to Watson and instead reduced the suspension given to Watson to a mere 18 games. 

That decision was met with considerably more controversy as both fans who have strong opinions on domestic violence and the National Hockey League itself were disappointed by the decision to cut a domestic abuser a break. After all former Los Angeles Kings defenseman Slava Voynov was effectively banned from the league entirely following an incident that occurred between himself and his wife, although admittedly the Voynov situation was believed to have been considerably worse. Voynov allegedly beat his wife to a bloody pulp while the accusations against Watson, accusations that were not supported by the victim in this case, were bad but nowhere near as heinous in nature. 

Watson stands accused of having shoved his girlfriend to the point of causing bruising on her body and there were reports that he has had a tenancy to get "handsy" in the past. Now however a new statement released by the alleged victim in this case paints a very different story of what happened on that day and may explain in part the decision to reduce his suspension down to a mere 18 games. In a now deleted tweet Adam Vingan of the Tennessean reported a statement released by Jenn Guardino regarding what happened on that dat. The statement is presented to you unedited and in full for the sake of preserving the integrity of her words:

I would like to start by saying how much I appreciate my family and friend's support during this time. I would also like to extend my sincere compassion to victims of domestic violence. The incident that took place on June 16th, however, was not an act of domestic violence. Austin Watson has never, and would never hit or abuse me. My behavior and state of intoxication lead to the police being involved that day. I have struggled with alcoholism for many years and I am actively involved in AA. I am fortunate to have Austin's continued support with my treatment. We handled matters poorly on June 16th and know that we need to make better decisions going forward. I take full responsibility for my actions on that day. I would like to sincerely apologize to everyone involved for the negative attention that followed this incident, including the Nashville Predators community and the city of Nashville.

Victims of domestic violence often protect their abusers so it's hard to tell how much of this is genuine and how much of it stems from a desire to protect Watson. If she is indeed being genuine however this paints Watson in a very different light than the one he has been portrayed in over the last several months.