Edmonton Oilers centre Connor McDavid and Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Ron Hainsey (THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn) It’s not the way it should be, but it is. It’s also natural if the penalties in a game are leaning four in favor of one team and none for the other, that officials will look more closely to give at least one power play to the other team. It’s logical to assume that player won’t get a future call, even if he’s earned one. In some cases, a referee doesn’t like being made to look like a fool when a player dives. They make mistakes, try to course correct, or get an edge. But that’s not a realistic world to live in when it comes to the ebbs and flow of a professional hockey game with so much speed and skill involved. I completely understand the argument that NHL officials should simply call what they see. And, as embarrassing as being caught on a hot mic was, make no mistake, this is hardly the biggest issue the league will need to address. The NHL probably felt like they had no alternative but to relieve Peel of his duties. Peel was heard on the FOX broadcast saying, “It wasn’t much, but I wanted to get a f-ckin’ penalty against Nashville early in the …” and then his mic cut out. Like it or not, the calls (or lack thereof) are a form of managing the game.Īnd, the question of officials managing a game is now the hot debate in the NHL since news broke that long-time league official Tim Peel was fired for admitting to a make-up call on a hot mic during a Nashville Predators vs. If even half of the penalties were called that the dynamic and speedy center should have drawn, the opposition would be in the penalty box most of the game. Remember Tim Peel.You won’t find too many Edmonton Oilers fans who believe the officiating - at least when it comes to NHL superstar Connor McDavid - is anywhere close to consistent. If they hold one in front of you, start coughing. If they try to put one on you, tell them you have a skin condition. Remember Tim Peel.Īnd refs? They should avoid hot mics. They’ll think you’re trying to get them fired. Players may find their colleagues in stripes a little jumpier for the next little while. You can be angry, but you better take the word “fixed” out of your vocabulary. Woe betides the coach who goes in too hard on the refs in the next little while. Maybe they’ll change the password at the door more often. What will change is the nature of the written rules vs. On the ice, everything will stay exactly the same. How will this new policy of “integrity” affect hockey? It won’t. So in the time it takes to get everyone who matters in on the e-mail chain, the NHL turned him from a person into an example. Peel pointed out the lie in that promise. What they want is the promise of an unbending line between their customers’ money and the game’s outcome, and officials pledged to see it stays straight. The betting organizations don’t care about your ancient codes and secret handshakes. The sports betting partner is a money person. The sports betting partner is not a hockey person. It’s MGM Resorts, FanDuel and William Hill. Now, suddenly, a wrinkle in our (mostly Canadian) conspiracy of the silence – the arrival of the NHL’s “official sports betting partners.” It’s not just PointsBet. No, there isn’t a rule for that part of it. But the rule doesn’t apply when we’re up by three, or with less than two minutes to go. But I bet you’d have trouble explaining it to someone who’s never watched hockey – “Sure, there is a rule for that. If you’ve read this far, you understand how this works as well as anyone. When their team gets jobbed by the ref, they pray for the ref to job the other team right after that.
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