Shocker of the Year: Todd Bertuzzi Not Suspended for Hit On Ryan Johnson

Like him or hate him, Todd Bertuzzi still has his incident with Steve Moore hanging over his head. It was this stigma that made me think he would be suspended after this clumsy (yet not dirty) hit on Chicago’s Ryan Johnson last night.

I thought it was all there: Bertuzzi is still largely disliked among most NHL fans. Coupled with Matt Cooke’s recent suspension, I thought we were looking at a good 5 games of ironic Shirtuzzis (seriously, buy one), if not more.

Instead, the NHL made the correct decision in deciding that Bertuzzi’s 5-minute major and game misconduct penalties (from last night) were punishment enough. Kudos to the NHL for assessing the hit itself, and not the guy who delivered it (though Bertuzzi hasn’t been suspended since the Moore incident), when looking back at this play.

Arrow to top