The National Hockey League ought to be ashamed of the officiating displayed in game three of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal series between the Tampa Bay Lightning and Montreal Canadiens. It was, in a word, embarrassing. Just as it looked like the Bolts might be able to generate some life, their efforts were snuffed out by some ‘questionable’ calls and non-calls. The result was a 3-2 loss to the Canadiens, which puts Tampa on life support with a 0-3 series deficit.
Tampa started game three just as it had played the first two. What exactly does that mean? Well, it means that the Lightning weren’t very good at all. Montreal dominated the opening frame, while the Bolts struggled to get the puck through the center of the ice. Perhaps the best evidence of this is the first frame’s shot attempts chart.
This Extra Skater Fenwick chart from the first period is screaming for a photoshop. pic.twitter.com/03DaafafHY
— Laura/theactivestick (@theactivestick) April 21, 2014After allowing that weak first goal, Lindback rebounded nicely with some stellar saves to finish up the first period. While the team in front of him sagged and made poor decisions with the puck, Lindback was there to make big save after big save. His play generated some league-wide attention.
Lindback did a great job -- should have been about 6-0
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) April 20, 2014The tides sort of turned in the second period, as the Bolts got their legs moving for arguably the first time in the series. Ondrej Palat scored the team’s first goal, a power play marker, at 8:39 to tie things up at one. Assists on Palat’s first career NHL playoff goal went to Steven Stamkos and Victor Hedman. It gave Tampa a much needed dose of life.
Things got disappointingly weird only minutes later, as Tampa appeared to score their second of the game to take their first lead since game one. That was until the referees decided to waive it off. With Alex Killorn and PK Subban battling in front, Ryan Callahan jumped on a loose puck and potted it past Price. The referees determined that Killorn made incidental contact with the goaltender and therefore nullified the goal.
The no-goal call. http://t.co/owvV19MBV7
— Michael Stuart (@HB_MikeStuart) April 21, 2014Like most, I believe Tampa's goal vs. MTL should not have been disallowed.
— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) April 21, 2014As Babcock said to the ref in 24/7: "Don't know if you've heard, but we're trying to INCREASE scoring." Terrible call in MTL.
— Chris Botta (@ChrisBottaNHL) April 21, 2014These officials are like Rob Ford-drunk, right?
— Bruce Arthur (@bruce_arthur) April 21, 2014As if the blown call wasn’t enough, things went from bad to worse only moments later when Steven Stamkos took a knee to the head. After being knocked down by Brandon Prust (interference?), Stamkos got dinged in the melon by Alexei Emelin.
VIDEO: Stamkos takes knee to the head and has to leave the game: http://t.co/2c7OvsPHcz #TSN #NHL
— NHL on TSN (@NHLonTSN) April 21, 2014After being hit, the Lightning’s captain and best player struggled to get to his feet and off the ice. It was a scary situation for anyone who cares about the well-being of hockey players. Certain fans in attendance at the Bell Centre don’t fit into that category.
Montreal fans chanting "Stamkos" and booing as Stamkos struggles to get off the ice. Unbelievable lack of class.
— Michael Stuart (@HB_MikeStuart) April 21, 2014Then, with less than two minutes left in the second period, Brendan Gallagher beat Lindback to make it 2-1 for Montreal. To call that sequence a turn of events would be to understate things in a big way.
Tomas Plekanec extended the Montreal lead to 3-1 about six minutes into the final frame with his second goal of the postseason. That one was a backbreaker for the Lightning. His shot found its way through three players before squeaking through Lindback and into the gaping cage.
Even as they were down 3-1 late in the third, the Bolts were unwilling to roll over and die. Montreal retreated into a bit of a defensive shell, and that allowed Tampa to generate some of its best sustained pressure of the entire series. That solid play resulted in Matt Carle’s first goal of the playoffs at the 11:36 mark of the final period. Once again, they had life.
Frantic play and great chances ultimately failed to add up to a third Lightning goal, and so the final buzzer rang with the scoreboard showing a 3-2 score. The Canadiens waltzed out of the Bell Centre with their third consecutive victory in hand, while the Bolts were forced to leave with nothing. Disappointing doesn’t begin to describe it, especially when you consider how hard the team played in the latter half of the game.
I’m not one to blame officials for a game’s outcome, but the utter incompetence of the men in stripes tonight was hard to ignore. When you consider that the Bolts played the game at 5-on-7 for long stretches, it’s a damn miracle that they only lost by one goal. It’s fair to say that the sun is setting on their season, but the guys should take a lot of pride in how they handled themselves tonight.
So proud of the Lightning. Solid effort today against a very good hockey team and the worst officials in organized sports #GoBolts
— clark brooks (@clarkbrooks) April 21, 2014The Bolts will play game four in Montreal on Tuesday, though I’m not sure that matters much. Montreal has been the better team in this series from the moment the puck dropped in game one. Coming back from a 0-3 deficit is a nearly impossible task.
As always, thanks for reading.