A decade after Todd Bertuzzi’s hit on Steve Moore in an NHL hockey game caused a concussion and effectively ended Moore’s career, a settlement has been reached between the two men and the Vancouver Canucks, which was also named in Moore’s lawsuit.
The hit occurred when Bertuzzi struck Moore from behind in retaliation for a hit made by Moore on Canucks captain Markus Naslund in a previous game. Moore suffered a concussion and three broken vertebrae. Shortly thereafter, Moore sued the defendants for $38 million. His attorney, Geoff Adair, would later increase the demand to $68 million
The Canucks confirmed the settlement with a statement.
“Canucks Sports & Entertainment confirms that a mutually agreeable and confidential settlement of the action commenced by Steve Moore against Todd Bertuzzi and the Vancouver Canucks has been reached,” the Canucks organization confirmed. “The settlement is a result of mediation sessions with former Ontario Chief Justice Warren Winkler. No further details will be disclosed and the Canucks respectfully decline requests for comment.”
Jon Heshka, Associate Dean of Law at Thompson Rivers University, told Concussion Litigation Reporter that “with a trial scheduled to start on September 8th, the out-of-court settlement between Moore and Bertuzzi is not entirely unexpected. Despite Bertuzzi pleading guilty to assault causing bodily harm and receiving a conditional discharge in the criminal case, Moore winning the asked-for $68 million in damages was far from scoring an empty-netter.”
NHL officials may be breathing “a sigh of relief,” according to Heshka.
“The out-of-court settlement denies fans an opportunity to hear first-hand accounts in court of the culture of violence that pervades hockey,” he said. “The settlement further means fans won’t hear the extent to which — if at all — the Vancouver Canuck’s coaching staff and ownership directed Bertuzzi to assault Moore as retribution for Moore’s concussing Canuck star captain Marcus Naslund with an open-ice hit earlier in the season.
“What the settlement does mean, if one has indeed been reached and there appears to be some uncertainty on that front, is that Moore is finally compensated for the injuries sustained on March 8, 2004 and the NHL can breathe a sigh of relief that this embarrassment will finally come to an end.”
Joseph M. Hanna, of Goldberg Segalla, also weighed in.
“The settlement here is potentially very significant considering the current wave of concussion-related litigation running rampant throughout professional and collegiate sports,” he said. “The NHL has several recent lawsuits pending, which have been consolidated in federal court in Minnesota. Commissioner Gary Bettman, team owners, and other executives would’ve been called to testify had this matter gone to trial, exposing the NHL’s handling of concussions and the violence causing them. While the NHL’s unique policy toward violence would’ve come under heavy scrutiny in this trial, it will stay out of the spotlight for now, until the concussion litigation moves forward.”
