Ex-Flyer Tocchet sentenced to probation for gambling ring

Former Flyers star Rick Tocchet was sentenced to two years' probation today for his role in a million-dollar bookmaking operation that he admitted running in partnership with a now-disgraced former New Jersey state trooper.

When asked whether he had anything to say during his brief sentencing hearing in State Superior Court in Mount Holly, Tocchet said: "I regret I was involved in this."

On May 25, the 43-year-old former right winger entered guilty pleas to charges of conspiracy to promote gambling and promoting gambling. Each carries a maximum five-year sentence, but because Tocchet has no prior criminal record authorities at the time said it was likely that he would receive no jail time.

This morning, Tocchet's lawyer, Kevin Marino, said there was no indication that Tocchet had ever bet on hockey games.

"It seems like this is the season for sports scandals," Marino said. "This is not a case where someone has compromised his sport or betrayed his fans."

Superior Court Judge Thomas S. Smith issued the sentence of two years' probation today.

Tocchet's chief co-defendant, former State Trooper James Harney, was sentenced to five years in prison earlier this month. Among other things, Harney admitted taking bets while on patrol in his state police cruiser.

A third defendant, James Ulmer, who played a minor role in the operation, is scheduled to be sentenced next week.

All three were arrested in February 2006 following a state police investigation dubbed "Operation Slapshot." Authorities say the ring began taking bets in September 2002.

The state alleged that the operation processed $1.7 million in bets during one 40-day period that included the 2006 Super Bowl and college bowl games.

Authorities also alleged that, on Jan. 1, 2006, the operation took 17 bets totaling $40,000 on professional football games from one customer.

Tocchet, who was an assistant coach with the NHL's Phoenix Coyotes when he was charged, was forced to take a leave from his coaching position.

The fact that the bookmaking operation did not involve professional hockey -- a point emphasized by Marino when he entered his guilty plea -- could help him avoid a total ban from the NHL.

At his sentencing hearing Aug. 3, Harney, 41, an eight-year veteran of the state police, described how he and Tocchet ran the bookmaking operation. He said Tocchet often supplied the cash to cover losses and that he routinely gave Tocchet "a bag of cash" from their profits.

Both Tocchet and Ulmer of Swedesboro pleaded guilty after Harney began cooperating with authorities following his arrest.

Harney had to forfeit $700,000 in cash and property after agreeing to plead guilty to conspiracy, promoting gambling and official misconduct. He also lost his job as a state trooper.

There was no mention of forfeiture in Tocchet's plea deal.

At Tocchet's plea hearing in May, Deputy Attorney General Mark Eliades said there was a "presumption of non-incarceration" in the case because of the low level of the offenses and because Tocchet had no criminal record.

Investigators had alleged - and Harney had said at his sentencing - that Tocchet was an equal partner and shared in the profits of the operation.

While authorities have never identified who placed wagers with the betting ring, sources have said regular customers included a recognizable list of professional athletes and celebrities, including former Flyer Jeremy Roenick and actress Janet Jones, the wife of hockey icon Wayne Gretzky. Gretzky is the coach of the Phoenix Coyotes. Tocchet was his assistant.

When details of  Operation Slapshot were first disclosed, authorities hinted at a possible organized crime connection, but that allegation was apparently without substance.

Lawyers for both Tocchet and Harney have said there never were any mob ties to the betting ring and that the Operation Slapshot designation wrongly implied that bets were taken on hockey games.

Tocchet reportedly met Harney nearly 20 years ago, while he was playing for the Flyers and Harney was working as a bartender at a hotel near the South Philadelphia sports complex.

Tocchet starred for the Flyers in the late 1980s and early 1990s. He was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 1991-92 season. His career also included stops in Los Angeles, Boston, Washington and Phoenix before he returned to the Flyers in 1999.

He retired as a player after the 2001-02 season. At the time, he was only the second player in NHL history to have scored 400 goals and collected 2,000 penalty minutes.