The NHL suspended Vancouver Canucks forward Todd Bertuzzi indefinitely for his sucker-punch on Colorado Avalanche forward Steve Moore on March 8, 2004. Here are some of the longest suspensions handed out by the league:
One year: Marty McSorley, Boston Bruins, for knocking out Vancouver's Donald Brashear with a stick-swinging hit in February 2000.
23 games: Gordie Dwyer, Tampa Bay Lightning, for abusing officials and leaving the penalty box to fight in a pre-season game against the Washington Capitals on Sept. 19, 2000.
21 games: Dale Hunter, Washington, for a blindside check of Pierre Turgeon of the New York Islanders following a Turgeon goal in the 1993 playoffs.
20 games: Tom Lysiak, Chicago Blackhawks, for intentionally tripping a linesman in October 1983.
20 games: Brad May, Phoenix Coyotes, for a slash to the head of Columbus' Steve Heinze.
16 games: Eddie Shore, Boston Bruins, for hitting Toronto's Ace Bailey over the head with his stick in 1933.
15 games (3 regular season, 12 playoff): Maurice Richard, Montreal Canadiens, for levelling linesman Cliff Thompson during a scuffle with Boston's Hal Laycoe in March 1955.
15 games: Wilf Paiement, Colorado Rockies, for swinging his stick and hitting Detroit's Dennis Polonich in the face in October 1978.
15 games: Dave Brown, Philadelphia Flyers, for cross-checking Tomas Sandstrom of the N.Y. Rangers across the face and breaking his jaw in November 1987.
15 games: Tony Granato, Los Angeles Kings, for slashing Pittsburgh's Neil Wilkinson in February 1994.
13 games: Wayne Maki, St. Louis Blues, and Ted Green, Boston Bruins, for swinging their sticks at each other in September 1969.
13 games: Andre Roy, Tampa Bay Lightning, for leaving the penalty box and physically abusing an official while trying to engage players in the New York Rangers penalty box in April 2002.
12 games: Brantt Myhres, San Jose Sharks, for leaving the bench to attack Los Angeles' Mattias Norstrom in February 1999.
12 games: Matt Johnson, Los Angeles Kings, for deliberately injuring New York Rangers' Jeff Beukeboom in November 1998.
12 games: Ron Hextall, Philadelphia Flyers, for attacking Montreal's Chris Chelios during a playoff game in May 1989.
12 games: David Shaw, New York Rangers, for high-sticking Pittsburgh's Mario Lemieux in October 1988.
11 games: Owen Nolan, San Jose Sharks, for a hit to the head of Grant Marshall of the Dallas Stars in February 2001.
11 games (3 playoff, 8 regular season): Tie Domi, Toronto Maple Leafs, for knocking out Scott Niedermayer with an elbow to the head in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals in 2001. Domi was suspended for the balance of the Leafs' post-season and the first eight games of the 2002-03 regular season.
10 games: Jimmy Mann, Winnipeg Jets, for sucker-punching Pittsburgh's Paul Gardner in January 1982.
10 games: Ruslan Salei, Anaheim Mighty Ducks, for hitting Dallas' Mike Modano from behind in October 1999.
10 games: Scott Niedermayer, New Jersey Devils, for hitting Florida's Peter Worrell in the head with his stick in March 2000.
with files from Canadian Press
INDEPTH: THE BERTUZZI INCIDENT10 Hockey Violence LowlightsCBC
Sports Online | March 9, 2004
In the wake of the Todd Bertuzzi's attack on Steve
Moore, we've compiled a list of 10 of the most noteworthy and memorable
acts of hockey goonery, including:
Boston Bruins defenceman Eddie Shore was
considered one of the roughest players of his era. On Dec. 12, 1933,
in a game versus the Leafs, Toronto's King Clancy stood up Shore at
the blue line as he was rushing up the ice with the puck. No penalty
was called.
An irate Shore exacted revenge by slamming into Leaf winger Ace Bailey
with a vicious hit from behind, sending the future Hall of Famer crashing
headlong into the ice.
Bailey suffered a fractured skull – onlookers said it sounded
like a watermelon hitting pavement – and never played again.
A benefit game held the next year in his honour morphed into what
is now the NHL All-Star Game.
The longtime Hab set the standard for snipers
with an eight-point game in 1944. Few can forget his 14 all-star selections
or his 1961 Hall of Fame induction. But the fiery "Rocket" Richard
may best be known for the riot he sparked.
It stemmed from a March 13, 1955, game in which Richard was given
a match penalty for deliberately injuring Hal Laycoe - tomahawking
him over the head with his stick – and punching linesman Cliff
Thompson. Richard was later suspended for the rest of the season,
causing an uproar amongst Habs fans, given Richard was leading the
NHL in scoring and his team was battling for first place.
The following season, NHL president Clarence Campbell was pelted with
eggs while attending a game between the Canadiens and Detroit at the
Montreal Forum. The game was forfeited and the arena evacuated due
to an out-of-control crowd that took to the streets. A riot ensued,
causing $500,000 in damage.
Imagine the worst stick-swinging
incident of the modern NHL era, complete with heavy wooden sticks
and helmets nowhere in sight.
Voila, you have St. Louis' Wayne Maki opposite "Terrible" Ted Green
of the Boston Bruins, circa 1969-70 in Ottawa.
In the midst of a pre-season game, Maki knocked Green down from behind.
The latter retaliated by slashing Maki, who hit the ice. Maki speared
Green, who again sent Maki flying. The pair soon exchanged vicious
slashes until Maki clubbed Green over the head, fracturing his skull.
Green needed three major operations to save his life and had a steel
plate inserted in his head. Maki was suspended for 30 days and Green
for 12 games when he returned to action one year later. Assault charges
were filed against both players, who were later acquitted.
While most incidents of on-ice violence are met with shock and disciplinary
action, Bobby Clarke's slash on Soviet superstar Valeri Kharlamov's
ankle has been lauded in some hockey circles as an act of heroism.
With Canada trailing in the legendary series 3-1-1 and in a dogfight
in Game Six, Clarke, at the encouragement of assistant coach John
Ferguson, delivered a brutal two-hand slash to Kharlamov's sore ankle.
The attack proved to be the turning point in the emotionally-charged
matchup.
Kharlamov, the Soviets' most skillful player, was never the same after
the hack, and the Canadians rallied for a series victory. When asked
about the incident years later Clarke said: "If I hadn't learned to
lay on a two-hander once in a while, I'd never have left Flin Flon."
The attack also cemented Canadian hockey players' reputation as thugs
who won games through intimidation and violence rather than skill
and finesse.
5. Maloney crowns Glennie;
crown sticks it to Maloney
Dan Maloney's NHL resume includes a Stanley
Cup appearance, all-star selection and three 20-plus goal seasons.
Oh yeah, an assault charge as well.
The former Detroit Red Wings left-winger was involved in an on-ice
attack against Toronto's Brian Glennie on Nov. 5, 1975. Glennie's
skull met Maloney's stick tomahawk-style, and it was lights-out for
the Leaf. The incident made further headlines when Ontario crown attorney
Roy McMurtry became involved and made the charge against Maloney.
Glennie was put on the stand, but it didn't matter much. "When I testified,
I said very little," he joked later. "How could I? I was out cold
at the time."
In exchange for a no-contest plea, Maloney did community service work.
He also was banned from playing in Toronto for two seasons. Maloney
finished his playing career with the Leafs in the early 1980s before
embarking on a coaching career with the club.
There have been plenty of modern-day brawls
in hockey, but none have come close to the impact of the 1987 world
junior championship game.
Canada was in contention for the gold medal and leading Russia 4-2
in the final game of the tournament … until a bench-clearing
brawl erupted. The ice was covered in helmets and gloves, and pairs
of skaters – goalies included – engaged in an orgy of
rock-em sock-em blows.
When officials failed to get control of the melee, they shut off the
lights at the arena. The players continued to fight in the dark, and
organizers cancelled the game. Both teams were eventually disqualified.
Some Canadians were proud of the squad (Don Cherry, for one), while
others were ashamed of the reputation it gave our national pastime.
Dale Hunter could hurt an opposing team on
more than just on the score sheet. The winger was never one to shy
away from the dirty side of hockey. When he retired from the game
in March 2000, he was the only player in NHL history to record more
than 300 goals and 1,000 points while still recording over 3,000 penalty
minutes.
But his brutal crosscheck on New York Islanders forward Pierre Turgeon
in an April 1993 playoff game was a black mark on his career. After
Turgeon scored a playoff series-clinching goal, Hunter came in from
behind and nailed the Islanders forward into the sideboards, separating
Turgeon's shoulder. Hunter, then with the Washington Capitals, was
given a then-NHL-record 21-game suspension. Turgeon missed six weeks
of action and his Islanders exited during the conference finals.
It was like a scene straight out of World
Wrestling Entertainment.
A junior-hockey enforcer leaves the bench to join a brawl, sucker-punches
an opponent from behind, straightens his arms while standing over
him, works the crowd, chases away another player already involved
in a fight, works the crowd again and throws his arms wildly like
a crazed lunatic, challenging players, fans and all comers.
On Nov. 2, 1998, Jeff Kugel was handed a 25-game suspension for attacking
Juri Golicic, as well as a lifetime ban from the Ontario Hockey League
as a result of the incident that occurred a month earlier between
the Windsor Spitfires and the Owen Sound Platers.
OHL commissioner David Branch softened his hardline stance on Kugel's
punishment following a lengthy appeal, saying the then-18-year-old
could apply for reinstatement at the end of the season.
Windsor later waived the six-foot-seven-inch, 265-pound Kugel, who
went on to play two games for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds in 1999-2000
and four contests that same season with the Flint Generals of the
United Hockey League.
The 1998 Nagano Games was supposed to be
THE Olympics for the Canadian men's hockey team … until Gary Suter
gave Paul Kariya some free dental work.
In a Feb. 1 NHL game between the Chicago Blackhawks and Anaheim, Kariya
scored for the Mighty Ducks and then was brutally cross-checked upside
the head by Suter.
Interestingly, Vancouver Canucks GM Brian Burke was the NHL vice-president
at the time and slapped Suter with a huge (for the time) four-game
suspension for the obvious cheap shot.
Kariya missed the Olympics and the rest of the season with post-concussion
syndrome. He returned eight months later but saw his production fall
from 100 points in 1998-99 to 57 in 2001-02. Some say Kariya has never
been the same player since the hit.
Perhaps no other incident resonated in and
out of hockey circles than Marty McSorley-Donald Brashear incident
of February 2000.
McSorley, in the dying seconds of a game between his Boston Bruins
and Brashear's Vancouver Canucks, slashed the side of Brashear's head
with his stick. When the blow was struck, Brashear fell backwards
and slammed his head against the ice. Brashear, who had no memory
of the incident, suffered a severe concussion.
Outrage ensued and McSorley, who was suspended for 23 games, found
himself on trial for assault with a weapon that October. The aging
enforcer, who could have received an 18-month jail sentence, was handed
an 18-month conditional discharge. The only stipulation was that he
couldn't play any sport where Brashear was on the opposing team.
However, that condition really didn't matter anyway. The 17-year NHL
enforcer, with two Stanley Cups to his name, never played another
NHL game.
