User:GhostRiver/moore

Background
On February 16, 2004, the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Colorado Avalanche 1-0 in a National Hockey League (NHL) game held at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. Partway through the game, Steve Moore of the Avalanche collided with and injured Vancouver captain Markus Näslund. No penalty was called on the ice, a decision that angered Canucks coach Marc Crawford. Näslund, who exited the game bleeding midway through the second period, was taken to the hospital and diagnosed with a concussion that would keep him out of Vancouver's lineup for at least one week.

Näslund missed three games due to the injury, but when he returned to play for the Canucks, the told the Vancouver Sun that he was not interested in targeting Moore in future games and was more focused on winning.

Incident
The Canucks next played the Avalanche on their home ice, Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada, on March 8, 2004. It was the last of six scheduled meetings between Vancouver and Colorado during the 2003–04 NHL season before the 2004 Stanley Cup playoffs began. Six minutes into the first period, Moore initiated a fight with Matt Cooke, the first official hockey fight of his NHL career, and the two men battled to a draw.

International Ice Hockey Federation
Despite his indefinite suspension from the NHL, several European ice hockey teams displayed an interest in acquiring Bertuzzi for the 2004-05 season. On December 17, 2004, however, the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) barred Bertuzzi from playing ice hockey in Europe until his court case was resolved. The IIHF, the governing body of ice hockey outside of North America, referred to Bertuzzi's hit as "an extremely serious violation of the rules" that put the "sport into disrepute", and they acted in accordance with a statute that bans players whose participation would be considered "detrimental to the best interest of the sport".