Talk is that he will likely get arrested by the Vancouver PD. A la donald brashier experince.. I think thats total bullshit. I think he should be suspended for the rest of the year INCLUDING playoffs. Thus losing millions of dollars and crushing his teams hopes. When you become a hockey player you know the risks, the law should not apply in this case.
Consider this...from the Denver Post today:
Quote: The Avalanche today released the following statement from Head Athletic Trainer Pat Karns:
“Steve Moore will remain hospitalized in Vancouver for an indefinite period of time. Exams have revealed that Steve sustained a concussion and a cervical injury (neck fracture) and will be out at least for the remainder of the season. He also suffered deep facial lacerations and abrasions to the forehead, right cheek and upper lip.
"As soon as his condition permits him to travel, he will be transferred to Craig Hospital in Denver, where some of the best neurosurgeons in the country will reevaluate his condition in further detail. Steve regained consciousness before leaving the arena last night.”
Speaking solely from the "make the punishment fit the crime" point of view, Bertuzzi is done for this season (including the playoffs)...
Then, take it one tiny step further to the point where the fracture becomes displaced (as opposed to hairline) and the kid could have died right there on the ice...
Seems to me, if I were to walk up to a person 35 lbs lighter than myself in my workplace from behind and proceed to suckerpunch him and drive his head into the floor, the police might become involved...Why should Bertuzzi get any different treatment???
Don't kid yourself...this has nothing to do with the inherent "risks" of playing hockey...
M.
I've heard a lot of people use that phrase ("inherent risk") to defend Bertuzzi; but I have to disagree with them. The inherent risks associated with hockey do not include getting sucker-punched and then driven face first into the ice, followed by having another player jump on your back. The inherent risks are those that could reasonably occur during the playing of the game.
I got to see the video today, I don't think it was that bad. He just got him in the ear with a good shot and he fell hard.
He will get his next time they play.
MikeS Wrote:Seems to me, if I were to walk up to a person 35 lbs lighter than myself in my workplace from behind and proceed to suckerpunch him and drive his head into the floor, the police might become involved...Why should Bertuzzi get any different treatment???
M.
Is fighting and violence apart of your workplace????
Is it a sport in which contacts are signed???
If i fight somebody at work the cops will be called, so should they be called every night at the rink. NO
Since the attitude in hockey is and eye for an eye type mentality which lead to this cheap shot on Moore, I think the punishment should reflect that. Bertuzzi should have to sit out until Moore is fit to play again, if Moore is unable to play again then Bertuzzi should be out for good. He knew what he was doing, it was cheap and wrong and he should be ready to never play again if what he's done ends up taking Moore out of the game forever.
Am I the only one who thinks what Todd did was ok? I'm not for ending peoples careers but NHL hockey is a man's game. No one seemed too upset when Markus was given a cheap shot so why now. I love hockey and will play until I can't skate anymore. I developed friendships with my fellow team members and would go to bat for them on the ice ANY time they need it and I know they feel the same for me. This is just a rec team I couldn't imagine what it would be like to live and travel with a team for 9 months a year. I think Todd took it personal when Markus went down. If the NHL was to get ride of the stupid instigator rule, the Markus hit would have been dealt with when it happened. Violence is a part of NHL hockey. It has been since the dawning of time. If you don't like don't watch. I think NHL hockey would become ringette without the hits and fights.
Go nucks!
I am not going to saay what Todd did is right, Brad May did what was best for the team taking on Worrell twice and then putting the Puck in the net. I have no respect for the sucker-punch it does help him or his team. I am a huge Nucks fan and have supported Bertuzzi the whole way but what happened last night was a complete lack of judgement. 3 Canucks went after Moore on that shift and Moore wouldn't respond, Bertuzzi lost it. The Canucks had nothing go there way and it was visibly frustrating. These things happen in the blink of an eye. I don't believe he had any intent to take it as far as it did and it didn't help that 3 more guys piled on top after it happened. As far as his punishment let it fit the crime not the injury. Say Todd didn't injure him at all then it should still be at least 10 games. There are proper ways to take care of problems on the ice and that wasn't one of them if you want revenge square off and have it out. Not much honor in sucker-punching him. It was a pretty decent game until that point, despite the score.
Well, the problem is more like: where do you draw the line? When should or shouldn't the cops be called in?
I mean, remember when Kris Draper was rocked by C.Lemieux? He was hurt pretty bad/hit from behind.... no cops
Using the stick as a weapon, well... obviously... but the other cases are not so black and white. It almost looks like the neck injury was suffered by the fall, and Im not too sure if Bertuzzi jumped on him or not...
It is way too hard to tell, but if the cops are going to start getting involved, then there should be some sort of standard
Still not sure what sort of punishment Bertuzzi deserves, rest of the season obviously, possibly just to give him time to reflect and, for lack of a better term, feel awful. A real punishment would be a suspension from the playoffs as well, but Vancouver is a prime team with a decent chance of going somewhere in the playoffs. Does the NHL really want to lose out if the Canucks make an early playoff departure? Vancouver is a fairly big market, and one would assume the NHL wants the playoffs to be as exciting as possible this year...although it seems like a fair punishment, I really can't see them putting him out for the playoffs. Two interesting things to think about though...
Why was Moore even on the ice? Vancouver is getting worked, it's late in the game, Tony Granato, having spent many years playing in the NHL should have known that a Vancouver player, knowing the game is already out of reach might try to take a cheap shot at Moore. Granted, Bertuzzi went too far, but I still believe throwing Moore, a rookie out there was like feeding him to the sharks....Secondly....I saw an interview with Domi today, and he said it best. Very few people, especially within the media, know what it is like to be playing in fron of thousands of screaming fans. Your adrenaline must be flowing, and all Bertuzzi had to do was remember a snapshot of what he believed happened to Naslund, and if Moore was there, Moore gets decked. And I believe that's exactly what happened. I truly believe Bertuzzi was a walking wreck of life after the game, and feels the utmost remorse.
Tomorrow morning at the disciplinary hearing will be interesting...
Matt Johnson got 10 games for a similar sucker-punch a couple of years ago, and that was with a prior recent history of bad acts. What McSorely got, in terms of games, was 23 (it was a 1 yr suspension, but he retired afterwards). There's only 13 games left for the Canucks, so Bertuzzi will probably get the 13 game suspension and be back for the playoffs.
Colin Campbell goes by the book fairly and while some will argue there was substantial premediation, he might just use the Johnson suspension as precedent for Bertuzzi's. McSorely used his stick, which is why his suspension was so severe. I'm sure nobody in the Canucks organization directed Bertuzzi to do what he did, and since he's a star player who means alot to his team (vs. Moore who plays a small role on the Avs), he'll most likely be back for the playoffs. The NHL will not punish the Canucks by ruining any hopes they have for a playoff run, but at the same time use comparable precedent to suspend Bertuzzi during the regular season.
Some could say that Bertuzzi has a history of violence (10-gm suspension in Oct 2001) but I've heard there's a statute of limitations within the NHL discipline structure. Apparently Bertuzzi's record was expunged in Oct 2003, so that incident wouldn't apply when deciding this punishment.
what kind of lame ass f**k hits a guy from behind knocks him out cold before he hits the ice then jumps on him. his neck is fractured folks.
Good old Todd should have got infront of him punched him in the face
not from behind. Wasn't he in vancouver when mcsorley wacked
brashear in the head. he will be suspended for the rest of the season but he will play in the playoffs then finish his suspension next year
it is afterall the NHL.
Ron
gratts99 Wrote:MikeS Wrote:Seems to me, if I were to walk up to a person 35 lbs lighter than myself in my workplace from behind and proceed to suckerpunch him and drive his head into the floor, the police might become involved...Why should Bertuzzi get any different treatment???
M.
Is fighting and violence apart of your workplace????
Is it a sport in which contacts are signed???
If i fight somebody at work the cops will be called, so should they be called every night at the rink. NO
There's a BIG difference between your average hockey fight and the cheap shot Bertuzzi laid on Moore...it went above and beyond any fictitious "code" that may exist in the game...
By symbolically dropping their gloves, players entering a normal hockey fight acknowledge the risk of what they're about to do...
In contrast, what Bertuzzi did was assault an unsuspecting player...
I'm pretty sure neither Moore's nor Bertuzzi's contract contains expressed written consent to be "gooned" whenever necessary...
It's a moot point anyway; Bertuzzi's season ends in just over 9 hours...
M.
Moore = broken neck, bertuzzi should be season + playoffs and some if not most of next season...Lets set a precedent that this type of behaviour in the greatest sport in the world will not be accepted.