Former Canucks GM Files Lawsuit Against Writer Over Comments

Former Canucks GM Burke Files Lawsuit Against N.Y. Post’s Larry Brooks

Former Canucks President & GM and current TSN analyst Brian Burke has filed a lawsuit in B.C. Supreme Court against N.Y. Post hockey writer Larry Brooks, seeking “general, aggravated and punitive damages” for “defamatory statements” regarding Canucks RW Todd Bertuzzi’s assault of Avalanche C Steve Moore in March ’04, according to Gary Kingston of the VANCOUVER SUN. After the incident, Brooks wrote that he “couldn’t wait until Burke is asked about ‘his organization’s role in the sneak attack’ on Moore as payback” for Moore’s hit on Canucks C Markus Naslund in a game three weeks earlier. The lawsuit says that Brooks’ column “has caused serious injury to Burke’s character and reputation” (VANCOUVER SUN, 4/15).

ANOTHER SUIT: In Ottawa, Bruce Garrioch reports former Senators GM Marshall Johnston has filed a C$275,000 lawsuit in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice against Senators President & CEO Roy Mlakar and former Senators VP/Finance Mark Goudie, claiming that he “was guaranteed he would receive the same compensation predecessor Rick Dudley did with the Senators.” Johnston said that while his deal paid him C$1.2M annually over three years, he “learned after leaving in June, 2002 that Dudley was scheduled to receive [C$1.375M]” (OTTAWA SUN, 4/15).