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Todd Bertuzzi (b. 2 February , 1975 in Sudbury , Ontario , Canada ) is a professional Ice Hockey player in the National Hockey League (NHL), playing for the Vancouver Canucks .
PLAYING CAREER Bertuzzi was drafted in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Islanders , but was traded to the Vancouver Canucks in 1998 along with Bryan McCabe for Trevor Linden . (Linden has since returned to Vancouver.) Bertuzzi's best season was 2002-2003 , when he had 97 points. Bertuzzi plays on the top line of the Vancouver Canucks, sometimes referred to as the '' West Coast Express '', which consists of himself, Markus Näslund , and Brendan Morrison . Bertuzzi is one of the league's largest and most feared players, renowned for his thunderous checks and adept scoring ability. The "Steve Moore incident" On February 16 2004 , during a Vancouver- Colorado game, player Steve Moore injured Vancouver Canucks team captain Markus Näslund with a hard open-ice bodycheck. The attending referee's opinion was that the hit was legal and required no penalty, a call that was later reviewed by NHL officials, who upheld his decision. This drew the ire of many Vancouver Canucks as their captain was sidelined with a concussion for three games. Canucks head coach Marc Crawford publicly criticized the non-call by the referees on the incident. Canucks general manager Brian Burke criticized Moore after the game, calling him "a marginal player," and accusing him of "headhunting" {Link without Title} . During another Vancouver-Colorado game three weeks after the Naslund hit, on March 8 2004 , Bertuzzi began following Steve Moore down the ice attempting to instigate a fight. When Moore ignored him, Bertuzzi punched Moore blindly in the side of the head. Moore was instantly knocked unconscious. Bertuzzi then either intentionally or accidentally fell forward, his momentum driving Moore into the ice. At this point, Moore's Colorado teammates retaliated against Bertuzzi, jumping on and around the ensuing pile. Moore suffered three fractured vertebrae in his neck, a grade three concussion, vertebral ligament damage, stretching of the brachial plexus nerves, and facial cuts. Some speculate that most of the injury was caused by his own teamates retaliating and jumping on Bertuzzi (who was on Moore). Aftermath On 10 March , 2004 , Bertuzzi scheduled a press conference where he emotionally apologized to Moore and his family, as well as to Brian Burke , John McCaw , the Canucks organization, his teammates, and the fans. "I’m truly sorry. I don’t play the game that way, I’m not a mean-spirited person. And I’m sorry for what happened." {Link without Title} On 24 June , 2004 , the criminal justice branch of the British Columbia Ministry of the Attorney General announced that Bertuzzi was formally charged with '' Assault Causing Bodily Harm ''. Bertuzzi was suspended indefinitely by the NHL, and lost approximately $500,000 USD in pay. The Vancouver Canucks were also fined $250,000 USD , on 11 March , 2004 for "...failure to prevent the atmosphere that may have led to Although Bertuzzi had played in a Charity game in Vancouver that was arranged during the 2004-05 NHL Lockout , the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) had extended his suspension to cover their jurisdiction. This meant that Bertuzzi could not play hockey in Europe during the lockout. It was felt that in the gentler European leagues, Bertuzzi would have drawn too much negative publicity. On 22 December , 2004 Bertuzzi pleaded guilty to the assualt charge after arranging a Plea Bargain with prosecutors. He was given a Conditional Discharge and one year's Probation . (Under Canadian Law , as Bertuzzi has successfully completed the probation the Criminal Record of the incident has been expunged.) {Link without Title} On February 17 2005 , Bertuzzi was named in a lawsuit filed by Steve Moore. Also named were Brad May, Brian Burke (the Canucks' general manager at the time of the incident), and the Canucks team. The lawsuit was thrown out in October 2005 , as the Colorado judge felt that British Columbia was a better venue for the suit. {Link without Title} Moore plans to appeal the lawsuit. On August 8 2005 , the NHL announced that Bertuzzi would be allowed to play hockey again at the start of the 2005-06 NHL Season . {Link without Title} In the league's decision, they cited many reasons for ending the suspension, such as:
On August 15 2005 , Bertuzzi broke his 17 month long silence by once again admitting to his mistake and expressing a desire to move on with his life. "I'm sure just like Steve Moore and his family, it's been difficult for both parties. I know I wish that day never happened. It's been some tough times, but I've got good family and good friends and good peers in the league that have helped me get over the hump and move forward and come through it." {Link without Title} On November 8 2005 , Moore's Toronto-based lawyer, Tim Danson, says that Moore is skating and doing regular workouts, but continues to suffer concussion-related symptoms.'' {Link without Title} On 2006 . 2006 Winter Olympics Bertuzzi was selected to play on the article, "'' president Chambers said the meeting was prompted by some media concerns raised over the three athletes participating in the Games. The fact it took the committee so long to approve the list means there was some debate.''"[http://www.tsn.ca/nhl/news_story/?ID=147944&hubname=nhl] Bertuzzi would go on to earn 3 assists and a +1 rating in 6 games to tie for 2nd highest in points for Team Canada. However, they would fail to advance past the quarterfinals due to a 2-0 loss to Team Russia, and would finish the Winter Olympics in 7th place overall.[http://www.forecaster.ca/cbc/hockey/extras.cgi?olympics2006-index ACHIEVEMENTS
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