[clearlyentranced]

A judge handed Bertuzzi a conditional discharage..yep, that's it. Well, a year of parole and 20 hours community service...but yeah..that's all. Meanwhile, any average joe pulls that kind of stunt, he'd get jail time..

Hopefully a huge civil suit will follow this pathetic outcome.

[gratts99]

Meanwhile, any average joe pulls that kind of stunt, he'd get jail time..

.

NHL players are not average joes, or else tie domi would of been locked away years ago. Let hockey deal with their own (unless a death is incurred)

[The Heron Outside]

Agreed gratts...but I gotta say, when watching the highlights of the decision last night, they showed a clip of the punch four times, within a two-minute span. This thing has got to go away. The more TSN re-runs a clip of the punch, the bigger it's going to become. You want kids to stop doing these things, stop following in the lead of NHL'ers? It wouldn't hurt to stop showing the clip and stop perpetuating the thing.

[clearlyentranced]

I know they aren't average Joes, I was trying to make the comparison there.. I just don't understand why anyone should be treated any differently just because they're on an ice rink, basketball court, football field..etc..Whether they're in the rink or not, they're nothing more than civilians.

[The Darkest Canuck]

far worse things have happened in the NHL and in hockey in general over the years, and very few have ever gone to court, i'm not saying it's wrong or right, i'm just sayin'...

[o78]

Meanwhile, any average joe pulls that kind of stunt, he'd get jail time..

Hardly...have you been following the justice system lately? Most people actually would not get jail time - especially if they are first time offenders.

I am not saying what he did was okay - because it obviously wasn't. What I do think is that the NHL just decided to use him as an example. There have been lots of other cheap shots in hockey and some way worse than this one. This crap doesn't belong in hockey at all but I really don't think Bertuzzi ever deserved jail time.

[clearlyentranced]

Yeah well you may be right..maybe they wouldn't get jail time..but they would atleast get a criminal record out of it...Bertuzzi didn't even get that.

[j-monster]

I suppose probation, more community service, some kind of record would probably have been appropriate... a conditional discharge seems a bit light. But jail time? No way.

I'm a bit surprised Steve Moore is holding off on the civil suit... but regardless, let's hope he regains full health soon.

[fingernailsonhull]

The fact that our justice system should be the laughing-stock of the Western world does not excuse this. It does not excuse any of the unjust judgments that are handed down. When will the NHL stop tacitly endorsing the archaic mentality that is so prevalent in the sport? I love hockey. I eat, sleep, and breathe hockey through the whole season and wear my Leaf paraphernalia constantly in the playoffs. I am also a minor hockey official and have been for 7 years. I have seen enough garbage from players as young as 17 to know that this caveman mentality extends to all levels of the game - even small-town houseleague. Due to a malicious sucker punch, a man has cracked vertebrae and continues to suffer from concussion symptoms nearly a year after the event. How can we, as responsible citizens, say this is part of the game? A man's life cannot be reduced to part of a passtime. IMO, our wonderful Canadian injustice system has let us down once again. It's time for Gary Bettman and Colin Campbell to stand up and change the face of hockey. Encourage spirited, aggressive, and physical play. Discourage cowardly acts that break a man's neck. What is wrong with us that we can condone this? Bertuzzi should never play in the NHL again. Perhaps this will set a precedent. The NHL should police itself. But that requires harsh discipline sometimes. I love the game. I police the game myself. It is an incredible sport. A lifetime suspension for Bertuzzi is in its best interests.

[cferneyh]

Bertuzzi should never play in the NHL again. Perhaps this will set a precedent. The NHL should police itself. But that requires harsh discipline sometimes. I love the game. I police the game myself. It is an incredible sport. A lifetime suspension for Bertuzzi is in its best interests.

I honestly believe that if it had been Jerko Ruutu or Artem Chubarov or some other marginal NHLer on the Canucks, that's exactly what would have happened. But given that it was Bertuzzi - who is a star player - it would never happen. Besides, even if it did happen, I can guarantee Bertuzzi would sue the league and get reinstated, a la Latrell Spreewell after choking PJ Carlissimo.

And there will definitely be a civil suit. I'm being brutally honest here, but Moore was a very marginal NHLer. He was easily in the bottom 10% of NHLers, and guys like that have careers that last 2-3 years. Once they hit the 3 year mark, their salaries become too high to jutify paying them when there are hundreds of AHLers who can do the same job but at less pay. Guys like Moore are a dime a dozen, and teams treat them as such. He had a very narrow window of opportunity to be a bona fide NHLer, and this incident has closed that window. When he doesn't get offered any contracts if/when he fully recovers, that's when the civil suit will be announced, and we'll be shown the punch 8,000 more times.

[clearlyentranced]

There is no civil suit..Moore just wants to recover and play again, that's all he's concerned about now.

[go(r)d]

I admire Moore for not filing a civil suit. I would totally support his right to do so if he chose to, but I really respect him for not doing it. I would have been crushed to see my attacker get off with not even a criminal record (which would prevent him from crossing the border and therefore eliminating his future in hockey).

I am a complete hockey maniac, I follow it religiously, and in most cases I would say let the tough guys do their thing. But for Bertuzzi to nearly cripple a guy in retaliation for something that happened weeks before as the guy was skating away, trying to avoid a fight, is just too low for even me to accept as a "part of hockey". I think it was indefensible and a line HAS to be drawn where it is no longer OK for hockey to "deal" with its own. For shame.