My first time

It was a great day for me. I've never experienced the excitement and pleasure before. Today was my first time being bitched at because someone didn't agree with my column in the paper. It was my first column, but hopefully I have many more angry readers calling into the paper.

I'm sure Joel will tell you my column title sucks, but his recommendation was too clever and no one got it.

(Admin's Note: It was "A Paradigm Shifting Without A Clutch.")

I wrote about Todd Bertuzzi being charged. I don't think he should have been. Anyway, the guy on the other end of the phone started going off and I just listened. I countered every time he said something I didn't agree with.

The conversation ended with him complimenting me on my opinion piece. It's nice to see that I've got people talking.

(Admin's Note: In case you're curious about his editorial, I've typed it below. Yes, I have no life.)

Dane States His Case

Bertuzzi, what did you do?

On Thursday, June 24, Todd Bertuzzi was charged with assault causing bodily harm for his vicious on-ice attack directed at Steve Moore of the Colorado Avalanche. Moore suffered a broken neck and a concussion. It is still unknown whether he'll play next season. The incident at GM Place ocurred three and a half months ago in front of 18,000 fans.

The league acted quick and fierce. Bertuzzi was suspended for the final 13 games of the season. He missed the Canucks' seven post-season games. He lost more than $500,000 in salary. The Canucks were also fined $250,000 for the clubbing from behind. Bertuzzi wasn't selected for Team Canada at the World Hockey Championships in August, because the league hasn't reinstated Bertuzzi making him eligible to play. Now, he faces the possibility of jail time. It's too much.

The attack was terrible and deserved discipline. The league was taking care of it. Now, Bertuzzi has a lot more to worry about. The maximum penalty depends on how the Crown proceeds. Bertuzzi faces a maximum penalty of 18 months in provincial jail. Or if the Crown chooses to go the path of indictment, Bertuzzi could spend the rest of his NHL career in jail. The Supreme Court could send him away for a maximum of 10 years.

Jail time is unnecessary. Bertuzzi has been punished enough. Plus, how much punishment is going to be handed down? The Marty McSorley stick-upside-the-head incident received an 18-month conditional discharge, after being convicted of assault.

In 1998, Dino Ciccarelli was sentenced to one day in jail and fined $1,000 Cdn. for striking Luke Richardson in the head with his stick.

One more. In 1982, Jimmy Mann, Winnipeg Jets enforcer, left the bench and clocked Penguin's Paul Gardner. Mann broke Gardner's jaw in two places. The penalty was a $500 fine and a suspended sentence.

Whatever sentence the courts hand out pales in comparison to what his suspension has done to the Canucks. Bertuzzi could have been the difference in the first round of the playoffs. He could have scred the game winning goal in Game 7 to send the Canucks on to Round 2. He could have had the influence to extinguish the pesky flames before Game 7. It could have been the Canucks battling the Tampa Bay Lightning for the Stanley Cup. It could have been Vancouver's year. Now they'll never know.

The league has to look at ways to keep a similar occurence from happening again. I suggest they eliminate the instigator rule. A player who tries to fight an unwilling combatant is ejected from the game with the possibility of suspension. Before the instigator rule an enforcer could protect the team's star players. Bertuzzi's attack on Moore was in retaliation for a controversial bodycheck. In a previous game Moore injured Vancouver captain Marcus Naslund. Vancouver wanted to punish Moore for the hit. Bertuzzi was the one who acted.

Bertuzzi didn't drop the gloves and hit Moore face to face because of the instigator rule. Instead he chose to hit Moore from behind and take him to the ice, breaking Moore's neck. If Moore had skated away, the play would have likely resulted in a roughing call, and maybe a suspension. It wouldn't have been nearly as long as the one he's serving now.

The terrible assault never should have happened and the penalties could become even more sever with a conviction.