Former Oilers and Isles goalie Tommy Salo sentenced to prison in drunk driving case

According to a Swedish language report from Hockeysverige.com, former New York Islanders, Edmonton Oilers and Colorado Avalanche goaltender Tommy Salo has been convicted and sentenced to two months in prison following a drunk driving case in his native Sweden.

From Hockeysverige.com translated from Swedish to English:

In August, Salo drove his car over the railing on the E18 motorway. Police found the former star goalie in his car and blood tests taken from Salo revealed that he was 3.06 per cent drunk at the time of the incident.

The punishment for the Olympic hero from 1994 will be two months in prison.

The 49 year old Salo, who is remorseful for his actions, intends on appealing his sentence.

"We will appeal the verdict, but above all it would be nice to get rid of this now and move on in life," he said in Swedish to Hockeysverige.com. "Alcohol is a closed chapter for me after what happened. I have not drunk any alcohol at all after this. I am still grateful that there was no accident that could have affected anyone else," he said.

Salo played 526 career NHL games, mostly with the Islanders and Oilers, but is probably best known for his gaffe against Belarus at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.

Anyone else remember this?

The Swedish netminder was never quite the same after that and he'd play just one more season in the NHL before playing three more seasons in the Swedish Elite League.

"I have also taken outside help for my problems. If I felt bad before this happened, I have felt even worse during these five and a half months and, as I said, now I just want to put this behind me and start looking ahead," Salo said after his sentencing.

Unfortunately, it appears as if Salo's actions might have been a long time coming. He states that he has gone through a long depression after dealing with two divorces that have ruined him financially. "I have been through a couple of divorces that have affected my finances a lot, but there are also other things I do not want to go into that are behind it. There is no defense as to why I sat behind the wheel, but there is an explanation," says the former NHL star.