The dark cloud still lingers
by Casey Richey on Jul 30, 2010 3:41 PM CDT
in Opinion
43 comments
A tall man with a rugged stubble and heavy bags under his eyes stands at a podium in a dark suit as cameras flash all around him and reporters wait. Holding his right hand to his mouth, his lip still quivers and his eyes stare at the floor instead of the cameras and reporters in front of him. He lifts his head and begins to talk but he only makes it about 30 seconds before he has to lower his head back into his hand. He stays like that for what surely feels like an eternity before lifting his head back up and blinking his eyes repeatedly, trying to fight away tears. He continues talking, but only for a few more seconds before having to stop again; this time turning his back to those in attendance. He discretely wipes his nose and eyes with a handkerchief while his back is turned and then turns back to continue speaking. He speaks for another 30 seconds before walking off the stage with his wife and the team's general manager.
It had been two days since the incident that vilified him across the sports world. Two days since he swung his right fist from behind Steve Moore and sent him to the ice in an unconscious heap. In that short span of time, every synonym for "villain" was spewed in his direction following the attack on Steve Moore.
Monster. Criminal. Brute. Savage. Thug. Goon. These were all epithets that popped up on news outlets and message boards as the outrage from the incident began to spread across the sports world and eventually spilling over into everyday news.
Immediately the speculation began as to whether he was sincere in his apology or if he was "faking it" to try and salvage his public image. Analyst after analyst offered up opinion on the matter, putting forth a minor detail to swing it one way or the other. Even if he was sincere, would the public accept the apology and move on?
More than five years later, the answer is apparently still a resounding "no". Ask any NHL fan-that would remember the incident-what the first thought is in their mind when they hear the name "Todd Bertuzzi". I would be willing to bet that 9 times out of 10, the answer would be one of those aforementioned synonyms for "villain."
Given the very distinct intent to injure, it was no wonder that Todd Bertuzzi was labeled in such a manner. Sure, it was probably a situation in which his emotions got the better of him and it ended up costing him, and more importantly Steve Moore, dearly. Cast aside for the vicious attack on Moore, few teams would touch Bertuzzi. Post lock-out, Bertuzzi had not spent consecutive years in one city until his newest deal to stay in Detroit.
But there's also another side to this story as well. A side opposite of the dark past of the incident and the legal ramifications that have ensued. There's a story of a man trying to re-establish himself in a light separate from that the he brought upon himself. The Todd Bertuzzi that wore the Winged Wheel last year was not the Todd Bertuzzi of old. He did not drop the gloves a single time, he didn't go around the ice gooning it up, and he gave more effort than is expected of him each night.
Last year's version of Todd Bertuzzi was a man apart from his former self. Sure, he still provided somewhat of a physical presence just by being on the ice but he repeatedly walked away from fights because of trying to keep that distance from the past. He began to play solid and responsibly in the defensive zone--yes, Todd Bertuzzi began to backcheck. He began to defer scoring chances to his teammates with better opportunities and play as a better team player. And you could see that on the faces of his teammates, the players on the ice grinned when he would make an excellent pass or provide a great shootout goal. Surely, they see a guy that had worked so hard to distance himself from his past and become a better team player.
Asking people to not think of the Steve Moore incident when they hear Todd Bertuzzi's name is like asking people not to think of the color red when you say "red". It's just going to happen. However, I do think that there is a certain degree to which people are willing to accept that he has moved past that stage of his career and is attempting to prove that he has changed. I'm not asking people to forgive what he did to Steve Moore, because they shouldn't. What he did that night was absolutely unacceptable. But what I am asking is that people think of him as more than the guy that sucker-punched Moore. Everyone deserves a second shot, right?
0 recs |
43 comments
|
Email
Print
Comments
I Often Wonder
What would have happened to Bertuzzi’s career without the lockout. His attack on Moore happened late in the prior season and, by the time all was said and done, he served a relatively minor punishment. I think that in some ways, some people transferred some of their anger about the lockout onto Bertuzzi because his status was among the first things to get resurrected when the league resumed.
He probably should have been suspended for longer. I don’t doubt that his apology was sincere, and I think the way he’s played ever since is evidence of that. Bertuzzi deserves whatever scorn he gets, but I won’t feel badly for wanting him to succeed as a Red Wing.
I just hope that he can earn his new cap hit on the ice for Detroit.
by J.J. from Kansas on Jul 30, 2010 3:53 PM CDT reply actions
It was, however, the longest single punishment ever handed down at the time.
by slapshots1515 on Jul 31, 2010 12:59 PM CDT up reply actions
Everyone knows my opinion of Todd Bertuzzi...
But you’ve hit it right on the head. I like to poke fun of Bertuzzi, and I do think that he’s nothing but a villain for his completely unforgivable attack of Steve Moore. Period. There’s no defending it. We all understand the risk we take when we lace up and step onto the ice. Having a singular man out there that can dramatically increase that risk — to the point of potential death — is not what our sport is about and needed to be punished. Much worse than it was. Does that mean jail time? No — I don’t believe in bringing on-ice issues to off-ice law and order — but I don’t blame teams for not wanting to give him a second chance.
Was his apology sincere? Yes, undeniably. Even I don’t believe for a minute that he’s a bad MAN, or a villainous PERSON (and I’m as guilty as anyone for exacerbating that view, and it’s too fun NOT to). But he absolutely let his emotions get the best of him and he should know, as well as all of us, that his actions need repercussions.
Now that he has gotten that second chance, I’m glad to see he’s making the most of it. Detroit is as good a place as any to get your life and career back on track, and I wish him — the human being — well. If I had my way, I would still prefer he not be on my Red Wings. He represents an ugly (possibly the ugliest) moment in our sports history, having given the game a black eye at a time when it really couldn’t afford any more bruises. I’m afraid that the message his inclusion on Detroit’s roster sends is that what he’s done is endorsed by organization (and, of course, it isn’t).
Nevermind for a minute that — while he’s trying his heart out — I still don’t buy he’s a great fit in the system and not nearly worth his new (or old, for that matter) cap hit. He’s a Red Wing. And I’m a Red Wings fan. He’s one of us, love it or hate it.
I choose to hate it.
by Michael Petrella on Jul 30, 2010 4:02 PM CDT reply actions
I choose to hate it.
Ditto here.
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
Alright
I am with you guys here. I was unhappy when I learned he would be a Wing again. Then upset when I learned he got a friggin raise this offseason.
But when Steve Ott basically chewed his ear off and Bert didn’t fight him the whole game? I got a lot of respect for him after that. Steve Ott could make a nun fight him
I chose to "Like it"
It’s been hashed over and over about the Bertuzzi/Moore clash. It’s rarely mentioned that Moore luckily didn’t end Naslund’s career with his sucker elbow. Becuase of his injury, it’s totally passed over that Moore was perhaps, a more lowly goon than Todd. I like the fact that we have a GOOD player in Bertuzzi, a man who HAS changed his ways. Younger fans also don’t have
a perspective on hockey of the 40’s through 70’s when incidents like these being debated, were common place. Sure, the league has progressed for the better, and these incidents are
few and far between. That’s why they’re blown so out of proportion when they happen. Ok, so I’m an old fart that grew up with hockey being not just the most graceful professional sport around but, it’s also (or at least was) an extremely physical sport as well. As fast as our heros fly around the ice, it’s amazing more serious injuries aren’t common place.
Perhaps time to forgive Todd and move on. He was no angel – neither was Moore!
Expectations don't produce!
While I respect your "like it"
You’re way off on the analysis. No one’s debating that hockey isn’t a physical sport. There’s a difference between taking a measured physical risk and being the victim of a heartless, malicious act from behind by an opposing player.
I won’t debate that incidents like that occurred in the past, and I won’t claim to be an expert of 40’s hockey. But I’m old enough to know that any incident where the act was INTENDED on injuring a brother-in-ice would never be tolerated.
If it’s being “blown out of proportion,” I’d hate to see what else you believe is acceptable behavior on and off the ice.
Further, I’m getting tired of people blaming Steve Moore. Of course he wasn’t an innocent bystander — he was a fucking hockey player, aware of the risks, the physical aspect of the game, and even answered the bell for his actions. What happened to him was by no means an equal and opposite force making him answer for his actions. He threw a hit, some deemed it dirty, someone challenged him, he was happy to oblige.
That’s what they call old-time hockey, sir.
What Todd Bertuzzi did, while his team was getting his ass kicked, was nothing more than frustration and evil spilling over where it shouldn’t have. And Steve Moore hasn’t been on the ice since. That’s not justice. That’s malice.
by Michael Petrella on Aug 2, 2010 12:32 PM CDT up reply actions
...
*its ass kicked…. not his ass kicked. Obviously. He walked away like most criminals: unscathed.
by Michael Petrella on Aug 2, 2010 12:36 PM CDT up reply actions
im not saying what bertuzzi did was right but he did try to fight moore and moore wouldnt fight. so saying he as happy to oblige was incorrect.
But he did fight. Earlier in the game. Just not at that moment, against Bertuzzi.
by Michael Petrella on Aug 3, 2010 5:53 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions
You forgot "douche" and "douchebag"
or as my Wild fan friend calls him: “Berdouché”. He makes me hate your team twice as much.
As far as disparaging nicknames goes, my favorite remains Wings fan Baroque’s “Toddberculosis”. He coughs the puck up and is extremely contagious.
by J.J. from Kansas on Jul 30, 2010 7:07 PM CDT up reply actions
Personally I think it is laughable that most “fans” continue to call Bertuzzi and villain, and all that other stuff. Sure, the Moore incident was a bad decision on his part… but the only reason everyone hates him is because of the result and Moore’s injury. If this had happened and Moore would have braced himself and not been hurt, no one would have remembered this incident. It would just be on a long list of on-ice justice that was served.
How is it ok to tear apart a person for an act, but glorify others for the same act? Many of these people are a very hypocritical bunch. Most Red Wing fans are guilty of this. We all remember March 26, 1997. It was a glorious day for us Red Wing fans. At the heart of it was McCarty attacking Lemieux in similar fashion to the Bertuzzi incident, with one difference. Lemieux turtled and protected himself, Moore did not. Now I’m not at all saying it’s Moore’s fault, what I am saying is that these two acts are one in the same and NO ONE can deny it. The Lemieux thing was revenge, so was the Moore thing. Lemieux was sucker punched and jumped, so was Moore. Lemieux was not seriously hurt, Moore was. That’s the difference. A fine line between villain and hero. McCarty won the praise and admiration of his teammates and fans everywhere for his attack on Lemieux. Bertuzzi was villified for one reason, Moore’s career ended.
Many, many acts like these happen across the league EVERY year. Eventually someone is going to be seriously hurt as a result. The code in hockey (right or wrong) has always been an on-ice justice. Villify Bertuzzi if you want, but don’t glorify players for the same act just because no major injury occurs. That’s never the intention with these players and it certainly wasn’t the intention with Bertuzzi.
I “hated” Bertuzzi as much as the next guy when he was on the Canucks and this issue happened, but i don’t let that cloud my judgement and reality. There are countless sucker punches, crotch punches, hits from behind, intent to injure penalties, and such since that incident but none have garnered as much press because usually the player will come back if there is an injury. Well, just remember the next time you are rooting for your team to seek revenge on a hit or some injustice, if it happens it is the exact same thing as what Bertuzzi did. You may choose to deny it, and if you do… I hope you like being a hypocrite.
This is a good part of my reasoning any time a fan of another team chooses to harp on only this. Bertuzzi made a bad decision and both he and Moore were unlucky enough for it to have ended the way it did. Given a small amount of time, I could find you a hit or an intent similar to Bertuzzi’s from a member of any team in the league. This is one that happened to have ended the way the guy intended in that moment.
I do think Moore should have made a better decision than turning his back on Bertuzzi. He had already answered the bell and didn’t have to fight again, but any grown man knows that if a guy is trying to goad you into fighting and you turn your back on him, that’s an intentional sign of disrespect that’s going to anger him more. Steve Moore deserves a small part of the blame for this. He’s not completely innocent.
by J.J. from Kansas on Jul 31, 2010 8:07 AM CDT up reply actions
This^
I think what most people get upset about isn’t the action, but the result.
This first thing people think about is the extent of the injury, not the action that lead to it. I have no doubt in my mind that Todd Bertuzzi wanted to leave Steve Moore in considerable pain. I also have no doubt that Todd Bertuzzi wanted to leave Steve Moore in temporary pain. The fact that it ended up permanent was bad luck, indeed.
Yes, many are aware that there was a sucker punch involved, but like J.J. mentioned, if you challenge a guy and he turns away from you, then you only have two choices: start the fight with his back to you or walk (skate) away. You can argue forever about the right course of action, but I don’t think we can question that this situation pretty much ended up as an unexpected worst-case-scenario for both Moore and Bertuzzi. Neither wanted it to play out the way it did.
by Big Z in Orlando on Aug 2, 2010 5:20 PM CDT up reply actions
Double standard
Look at what Eddie Shore did back in his day in the NHL. Ace Bailey never did anything to anybody . Quote from wiki “In Boston on December 12 1933, Shore ended the career of Toronto Maple Leafs star Ace Bailey when he hit Bailey from behind. Shore had checked Bailey, apparently in retaliation for a hit that Shore had received from Bailey’s teammate King Clancy moments earlier. When Bailey’s head hit the ice he was knocked unconscious and went into convulsions. In retaliation, Leafs tough-guy Red Horner punched Shore, whose head hit the ice as he fell from the blow. Shore was knocked out and required seven stitches but wasn’t seriously injured. Bailey was rushed to hospital in critical condition with a fractured skull, and was operated on for more than four hours and there were fears he could die. Following the incident, Shore was suspended for 16 games by the league. Shore apologized to Bailey after the game, and the two shook hands at centre ice before a benefit game at Maple Leaf Gardens in Bailey’s honour on February 14 1934.” Yet he is a hockey god like figure .
Yah even Todd will tell you what happened was wrong so why can’t we get past what happned . And be honest if you remember Steve Moore he was looking to hurt people most of the games he played some thing Ace never did
Show me the CUP
I think it has a lot to do with a different culture. Back in those days, I always feel it has more like a boys are boys, men are men, and let’s shake hands and get on with it, at least from stories I hear (because I’m obviously not that old). Nowadays, it’s all about trying to get your pound of flesh too often. For instance, I don’t know if Bertuzzi would or would not accept the opportunity, but I don’t believe Moore would meet him at center ice to shake hands. Maybe rightly so, perhaps, depending on your view of things, but in my opinion that, right there, is the difference between Ace Bailey and Steve Moore.
by slapshots1515 on Jul 31, 2010 1:03 PM CDT up reply actions
You know....
I personally think that his apology was sincere. Looked like some pretty freaking Oscar-worthy acting otherwise. I don’t think Bert was thinking “I’m gonna end this dude’s career” when he swung at him…not defending the action at all. Just saying.
I also think he has been an improved person and player since then, the only thing he needs to eliminate is his awful back handed passes to no one in particular.
tuzzi
we all have thoughts on the bert/moore incident. i am one of the believers in the punishment at least equalling the crime, and what he did was not the typical hockey policing incident it was a crime. moore is done as a player and so should have bert. just like when a player is deemed to have stuck out a knee and takes out anothers knee that loses a season plus, the same season plus should be the suspension. lets see how many of those type checks happen after the first one costs someone a season plus in suspension. or the boarding non calls anymore that cause a concussion. i say no calls because officals/buttman have forgotten the boarding and charging are penalties. go even further and have it cost the team in the cap, if a suspension does not count against it. but further, i hate having bert on my childhood team from day one because he not only cost moore but he is no longer worth more than the minimum. watching very close, between the waste that williams was/is and the skating shell that tuzzi is’ cost lieno a place on the wings. i put that on “pedal to metal” baDcock equally. a quote he uses between every interview he is caught on between periods, even though he starts protecting one goal leads as early as late second periods at times. just watch the semi’s and finals of the olympics. back to the zero hero tuzz. after being put with zetts who may have played harder this past year than any before, tuzzi could only muster 44 points to include regular power play time and however many points he tallied destroying leino in detroit. he avoided protecting his team mates always skating into the picture after the scrums have ended. he did not protect zetts who got him his second contract. all i can say is watch the video from leino/season beginning on. this being the first year i have not erased them yet just to prove my points. unless he can be woken up if possible and he is young enough, he is as done as the 8 minute draper and maltby. i would have much rather seen a(or more) young possible future wing making (or not) his or their bones with tuzzi ice time and place on the team.
Bert
I think everyone forgets he hit Moore in retaliation for what Moore did to Naslund, you can see it here,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKeXMugPZVA&NR=1
Also, Bert followed Moore around the ice for at least 10-15 seconds trying to instigate, even grabbing him by the jersey before he hit him, Moore new something was coming, but failed to protect himself.
I’m not saying what he did was right, but for everyone to continue to hold this against him is wrong. I say forgive him and let him play his game.
Everyone keeps crying about the fact that we don’t have a tough guy to protect Dats and Zett, I’m sure he’s learned from his mistake, but it’s time he started protecting our stars.
Except Moore ALREADY FOUGHT EARLIER IN THE GAME.
He knew what was coming, and it was a fight, and he answered the bell. He was done because he had fulfilled what the requirement was, as he understood it – as everyone who talked with such reverence about the “code” understands it.
1. You injure the team’s star.
2. A fighter on the team challenges you.
3. You fight.
4. Regardless of win or loss, at that point THE ISSUE IS F***ING OVER.
You don’t have to take on all comers for the rest of the game and for multiple games afterwards. When another player is trying to instigate a fight late in a blowout game, YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO IGNORE IT AND NOT PROLONG THE GAME ANY LONGER THAN NECESSARY. Just keep playing as the clock winds down.
This was a case where a player was angry, he was frustrated, he picked on the easiest target to take out his frustration – one that was smaller and would give him the cover of seemingly legitimate justification – and bullied him. He was a petulant child taking out his frustrations on a target that was innocent of causing his frustrations (unless Moore actually scored all those goals, he had nothing to to with the blowout). It’s just that most temper tantrums don’t nearly kill someone.
It had nothing to do with hockey. It was an assault by a bully, that’s it.
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
And he can’t “protect” anyone. If he so much as takes a swing, no matter how justified, he’s toast. His reputation is too toxic for him to do anything.
And I think it’s a measure of his humanity that I don’t think he could, anyway. Even leaving the legal ramifications out of it, he knows that he almost killed someone out of anger. That can’t be an easy thing to deal with if you have any conscience at all, and it probably colors his interactions on ice all the time. He has to be thinking that his son is watching him and is old enough to take lessons from what dad does in the game. He no doubt wants to be a man who works hard, tries his best, and doesn’t hurt anyone by losing his temper. I can’t find that a bad thing to want to show to his son.
I still very badly want him to do it elsewhere, though.
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
I have no doubt his apology was sincere. It was still needed because he flew off the handle and let his emotions get the better of him, and that I do not agree with. At all.
I wonder how much of the whole incident was a parallel to what often happens in the US, especially in the southern states with football stars. Once a young man realized that he can get away with anything – any minor brush with the law, any bullying, any harassment, ANYTHING – because he happens to be able to throw a football so well that for that one minor skill he is elevated to the status of a quarterbacking god, he never hears the word “no” from anyone. It isn’t a surprise that as he grows older he doesn’t have any need to grow up, and when he does hear the word “no” he doesn’t take it seriously.
I wonder how many hockey players in Canada go through the same thing as they get older, and thus never need to learn to control their emotions because when they act out everyone around them makes excuses at the least, or praises them for it.
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
To put in my bit...
I have to say, back at the time that it happened, the first time I saw the replay, I was shocked.
But then I watched it again. (And again, and again, and again…thanks, ESPN).
And I realized exactly what I saw, and I realized I’ve even been that guy before. Bertuzzi, I mean. And so have a hell of a lot of other people that played hockey. We just haven’t ended someone’s career, which is of course unfortunate but not planned for.
I saw a man frustrated, blown out, high on emotion and anger, who saw someone who had just recently taken out one of his good friends and teammates in a previous game. I saw that man make a stupid choice, based on those emotions. And I saw the end result, and I saw that man come down off those emotions, and look horrified at what he had done.
Yes, he deserved to be punished. But he served that out. Those of you that play hockey, you’re willing to tell me you’ve never dished out a frustration shot? Maybe not a true cheap shot, not necessarily what I’m talking about, but adding a little something extra because you’re pissed off at the world and you see the right guy to take it out on?
I thought through all the players I’ve played with-my own teammates-and I realized I’d seen around 90% of them do something out of frustration, some time. And I’ve been on the receiving end of it myself dozens of times. Just because it didn’t result in the end of someone’s career doesn’t mean it wasn’t the exact same intent.
To summarize…before we villify Todd Bertuzzi, look in the mirror.
but why does frustration make it okay?
It isn’t at any other time. If a bicycle cuts you off in traffic, it’s not okay to fly off the handle and run him off the road. If your kid is misbehaving, it’s not okay to beat them. If your girlfriend doesn’t show sufficient sympathy for you when you didn’t get a promotion at work, it’s not okay to smack her – no matter how frustrated you are.
It’s a god-damned GAME. Maybe that’s why it’s considered okay for grown men to act like frustrated children when they get ignored. Or maybe it’s just testosterone poisoning, I don’t know.
Why should it be so damn hard to NOT WHACK SOMEONE WHEN YOU ARE UPSET.
That’s one of the first things parents teach their children – NO HITTING. It shouldn’t be acceptable to forget it just because someone is playing hockey.
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
Frustration doesn’t make it ok; frustration means he deserves a second chance to make a hockey career of it.
It’s the difference between the degrees of murder. A first-degree (premeditated) murder is committed by a true monster, a sociopath with basically no chance to ever be rehabilitated. The punishment for this type of murder is therefore (ideally) to keep them away from society forever so they can’t do more harm.
A second-degree (crime of passion) murder carries with it a punishment to show people how severe the consequences are of losing your temper and acting out violently. Rehabilitation is possible and, after serving their consequences, they should be given another chance to prove that they have a place in society.
Of course, I’m talking only about ideals here and feel free to destroy that with instances of sociopaths going free and free men going to the gas chamber, but at the heart of the matter, I feel that Bertuzzi is guilty of committing a crime of passion. He’s been made an example; he has been and will continue to be punished for this (remember, the civil suit by Moore and involving Crawford is still not settled). Responsible parents everywhere should not have trouble explaining why Bertuzzi is allowed back on the ice as a perfect example of why you should not lose your temper and attack somebody. Children need to be taught this as much as they need to be taught that sometimes people make mistakes.
by J.J. from Kansas on Jul 31, 2010 5:06 PM CDT up reply actions
it's not specifically you in this case
I think he deserves a second chance – I just wish every day it was on another team – and I blame the NHL itself for the lightness of his punishment. He did what he was supposed to, serve it and stay out of trouble ever since, and he does get credit for that.
It’s more my irritation with the idea that because someone has a job as a professional athlete standards are different and they can get away with things that employees in no other profession could get away with. I don’t care about non-work-related stuff – run around on your wife with anything in a skirt (hello, Tiger), stay out late with loose booze and cheap women, party like maniacs and waste all your money so you wind up in a homeless shelter three years after you retire – as long as it isn’t illegal (rape, DUI, murder, dogfighting, etc.) I don’t care.
But on the ice, don’t act like a spoiled brat and hit someone when you don’t get your way. You are the employee of a company that expects you to represent them well for the millions of dollars you get paid and perform to the best of your ability when you are on the ice. If you want to commit assault do it on your own time.
I hear so much excusing of bad behavior with the justification “it’s understandable because he was frustrated” that I want to scream.
//sigh//
I have got to try much harder to ignore the comments on Yahoo and similar sites, I guess. It just makes me angry and I want to choke someone myself. : /
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
I do see where you're coming from, I really do...
And if he had come out of his second chance and squandered it, acted like a prima donna, gone out and cheap shotted someone else-I’d be leading the charge to say that he’s done, banned for life, or at least a considerable length of time that would essentially end his career.
And I think we both agree that what he did was not OK. Just because I see it as an act of frustration does not mean that I’m saying, “oh, it’s fine, little Bert just got frustrated, there there now.” If he hadn’t been punished, I’d be against that too. His punishment probably should have been longer (a full season at least), but with the lockout and all, it was the best PR time for the NHL to let him back in on the heels of hockey coming back, so that it wasn’t a big story (classic Bettman, of course).
My contention is simply that given what he was dealt, he’s handled a stupid choice admirably, and I’m willing to give it a second chance for it. I don’t much give thirds, so if he were to do something again…
by slapshots1515 on Aug 1, 2010 12:21 PM CDT up reply actions
J.J. covered this pretty well...
It does not make it OK, which is why, as I said, he deserved to be punished, and he was. He’s served it. It was the longest single punishment in NHL history at the time. He’s done all the right things since then, and yet still gets it held against him worse than just about anyone in hockey in recent memory, save McSorley.
In fact, I can remember a WORSE incident, and it gets virtually no coverage whatsoever. Shortly after the Bertuzzi incident, Chris Simon swung his stick at another players face (Ryan Holliweg, I believe?). You know what the major difference is, in terms of why it doesn’t get anywhere near the media coverage? Holliweg skated away. What if he lacerates an eye, or causes a closed head injury, or any of the sort? Simon served his time, and the incident really isn’t talked about at all anymore. The NHL and in all reality most fans are far too results-based in how they react to these things.
And I’m not saying Bertuzzi’s thing should be OK because Simon’s was treated as OK (by the media). It was wrong. He deserved punishment. He got punishment. I just don’t feel as if he needs to be pegged as quite the mass-murderer he gets made out to be.
by slapshots1515 on Aug 1, 2010 2:24 AM CDT up reply actions
My biggest problem with him on Detroit is actually that he’s not the hockey player any more that some people seem to still see. I was okay (ish) with a one-year deal initially because it was for cheap and one year, so if it didn’t work out at least it was inexpensive short-term suckage and then he was GONE.
He isn’t worth the next couple years. He’s not worth the cap space or the roster spot for his declining skills, his baggage, and for the injuries that I am sure will rear their heads again after the last season. It was an aberration and I would have rather the spot gone to someone else. I don’t think he makes the team any better and he might make it worse at times. He’s not a good use of the team’s limited dollars.
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
disagree
Sorry, but have to disagree that Bert’s “not good use of the teams limited dollars.” If he performs like he did during those injury-plagued months last year, he earns his spot and dollars…nothing to show he won’t. Just like any player, we won’t know how he plays until he plays.
by wingsluver4ever on Aug 1, 2010 8:47 AM CDT up reply actions
Well, he’s a complementary player that showed good chemistry with Franzen last playoffs. I don’t particularly like paying 2 mil for him, but he’s not terrible.
by slapshots1515 on Aug 1, 2010 12:22 PM CDT up reply actions
Also… remember that he had his coach drilling the notion of revenge into their heads. That’s always been the M.O. of Marc Crawford. I really think more should have been done to Crawford.
on Bert
As a Wings fan I commend Bert’s play last during those horrific months of the who-is-going-to-get-hurt-next season. He stepped up and played very well…one of only 3 players (if remembering correctly) that played the entire season.
I understand the hate from so many, but also agree that the same thing can happen so many times each night around the NHL. Cuz yes, we cheered Mac til we were hoarse for turtling Lemieux in revenge for the severe injury to Draper the year before.
I for one am glad that Todd has found a place where he can play.
And, we also need to remember that Marc Crawford appears to have had a part in the incident by ordering Bert to get Moore…probably not like that. But if he ordered it as the coach he has some responsbility for all of it, too.
by wingsluver4ever on Jul 31, 2010 5:42 PM CDT reply actions
PS
I do think his apology was sincere.
by wingsluver4ever on Jul 31, 2010 5:44 PM CDT up reply actions
I know this was an off-ice incident but
what about Dany Heatley? He was driving and in an accident that actually killed a teammate. He was traded from Atlanta to Ottawa so that he wouldn’t have to face any backlash from what had happened. I know that he was forgiven by his dead teammates family and not found guilty of any crime, but he still killed a teammate who could have had a successful career.
It may not have happened on the ice, but a career was ended nonetheless, but his reputation in the league has not suffered. Why is that so different from what happened in the Bertuzzi/Moore incident? Wasn’t the worst of Moore’s injuries caused by the fact that the majority of his teammates piled on top of the two of them? His injuries might not have been as severe if he teammates weren’t so quick to try to “save” him.
Not the same thing
On-ice incidents are different than off-ice incidents. Off-ice, there is a legal system that can handle the situation. A player gets in a fight with a fan while he is sitting in the penalty box is dealt with my a different mechanism than a player getting in a fight with a fan at a bar later in the night. In a bar fight, the local police deal with the matter – on-ice incidents, the league invents some ad hoc hodgepodge simulation of a disciplinary system.
Yes, Heatley killed someone through reckless driving. He was charged and punished for it. The punishment was too light, but that was what the legal system determined. The fact he wasn’t drunk was a huge factor, as that would have been a level of irresponsibility that would have been a lot harder to forgive.
And stop with the “his teammates shouldn’t have piled on top” bs. If they just stood back and let things happen, what would it have looked like if Moore’s neck was snapped and he was killed right there in front of them while they did nothing?
Point is if one person had controlled his childish temper none of this ever would have happened.
I’m so tired of talking about this I wish that useless spinning remnant of a hockey player would disappear. He’s a waste of cap space and a roster spot and makes me wish the team would lose sometimes.
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
not bs
The “his teammates shouldn’t have piled on top” is not bs. No one knows that the neck injury didn’t happen when everyone jumped on top of Bert and Moore. No arguing that Bert was wrong for hitting Moore from behind, but after that one sidewinder with his right Moore fell forward onto the ice with Bert on top. Several of Moore’s teammates immediately jumped on top of Bert pushing the whole pile down…not minimizing the incident and Bert’s part (or Crawford’s).
Although this is one of the worst on-ice injuries, it is not the worst hockey brutality displayed in frustration, anger, by order or just plain goonery: Draper’s head smashed down on the boards, McSorley’s brutal slash to Brashear, Suter’s crosscheck of Kariya, Hunter’s behind the back slamming of Turgeon into the boards, Simon’s stomping on the leg of Ruutu….just to name a few. Any one of these incidents could have also easily resulted in career ending injuries.
and all of that
Makes me debate longer and longer at the end of each offseason if I really want to bother spending any more attention on this particular industry. This crap and the stupidity of inconsistent “discipline” and the constant infernal pissing contests of the management … I keep thinking there are so many better ways to spend my time, and it is harder and harder to find reasons to pay attention. Right now I’m just thinking I should at least pay attention the next couple seasons so I can be a witness to the end of the NHL before the owners lock it out again. Goodness knows I don’t expect much to be all that interesting on the ice this season, no idea why. :(
"It is a mistake to try to look too far ahead. The chain of destiny can only be grasped one link at a time." --Sir Winston Churchill (1874 – 1965)
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recent FanPosts
In Association With
Latest Puck Daddy - NHL from Yahoo! Sports
- In which former NHL coach Ken Hitchcock foils a shoplifter
- Montreal's Price talks new 2-year contract, expectations post-Halak
- Donald Fehr aware of Kovalchuk drama, mum on everything else
- Puck Headlines: Savard's agent rants on Bettman; Halak in Montreal
- Boudreau, Crawford placed on the coaching hot seat
Certain photos copyright © 2010 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
