Part of the fans issue (IMHO) is when these errors happen ( the Attard call ) the frustration is compounded later because the leagues defense is usually akin to "oh, well, we missed one, nothing we can do now" and it gets OLD. Maybe if the NHL does a better job weeding through and preparing the refs these errors/mistakes get reduced. I have been thinking about the recent issue with the basketball game in Camden, NJ when one team lost because the referees clearly blew a call and even after admitting their error the call was not reversed, why? Same thing with blown calls in NHL games, if this young referee made a mistake then publicly comment and explain the punishment he received. If he's that dedicated to the job the embarrassment alone should make him want to do better. If a player makes a mistake the punishment is clear for the world to see (i.e. penalty, suspension, goal against, etc...) Just because Montreal rioted in 1955 because of referees decision doesn't mean the same thing would happen today. We worry too much about what MIGHT happen instead of doing a better job of preventing the wrong thing from happening.
My issue with referring in the NHL is too many times both teams by the end of the game end up with the same amount of powerplays. There have been countless amount of times where you see a team outplay or even dominate a team and yet both teams had 4 powerplays. If a team is outplaying another that much law of averages would dictate that the team outplaying/dominating would be getting more PP's. They would be doing more out there that would likely be forcing the team not playing so well to take more penalties and if the dominating team gets 3 straight penalties you know the next one is going against the dominating team. There's been many times I'm watching a game and the announcers will say the team that just went on 3 straight PP's better watch out because next one is likely to go against them. That to me sounds like a directive coming down by the league to even out penalties by games end or refs are taking it upon themselves to do it. Either way it doesn't sound like games are being fairly or properly refereed.
Also, when a ref makes a bad or borderline call here comes a make up call. A lot of times the make up call comes just a few seconds into the PP and a guy falls down not even being touched and the ref knew he blew the previous call so he has to make up for it. These things make everyone question the integrity of sports lately especially so much betting going on now how does one know if some calls in whatever sport aren't being made not necessarily to rig a game but to at least keep games within the betting line?
Great article. Reminds me of your analysis of Vinny Prospal getting a 10 minute misconduct for pointing at the scoreboard. - Jdhebner
@That's Not My Neighbor Haha, the comparison is so funny! You're right, there is a connection between the two, although the stakes are certainly different.
