Steve Moore, whose career ended when he suffered a serious concussion in a hockey altercation, has reached a settlement in a lawsuit against his attacker, media reports said.
The lawsuit against NHL player Todd Bertuzzi has been settled but isn’t yet official because there are still papers to be signed, Canadian sports broadcaster TSN.ca reported Tuesday.
Moore suffered a concussion and three fractured vertebrae during a March 8, 2004, game in Vancouver.
Bertuzzi, who was playing for the Vancouver Canucks at the time, skated after and grabbed the Colorado Avalanche forward, punching him from behind and then driving him head-first to the ice. Moore’s teammate Andrei Nikolishin then jumped on top of the two and Moore’s head hit the ice a second time. Others followed and jumped on the pile.
Bertuzzi was alleged to have been seeking retribution for a hit made by Moore on Canucks captain Markus Naslund in an earlier meeting.
Moore never played again. Bertuzzi, now 39 and a free agent, pleaded guilty to criminal assault causing bodily harm and was sentenced in 2006 to one year of probation and 80 hours of community service.
Moore was seeking up to $68mn in damages. The case was scheduled to go trial on September 8.
