Eventful week. Let’s start with a play I’ve been thinking about, re-watching since it occurred.
Last Thursday, Jared Bednar almost pulled out that beautiful hair when Zach Benson scored seconds after Scott Wedgewood was injured during a collision. Bednar was so angry, he asked for a video review he knew he’d lose, just so the officials would have to watch the play again. That is fantastic scorned-lover energy, but scores points with players. They need to know a coach has their back.
The whole situation looks worse with Wedgewood legitimately injured, out of the lineup. It’s not the first time we’ve seen goals while players are in distress — Avalanche fans saw it happen in 2019 to Matt Calvert against Vancouver. The one I remember most is Pittsburgh scoring during the 2017 playoffs while Zach Werenski bled all over the ice.
It’s the correct call, according to the rulebook. Don’t take away a scoring chance. It fails the eye test, though. You think, “Yeah, that’s not right.” And, as several perturbed Colorado crazies pointed out, there are times the play does get blown dead.
Generation Z may not remember, but a lot of this stems from the 1995 Stanley Cup Playoffs. The defending Stanley Cup champion Rangers were the eighth and final Eastern Conference seed, 18 points behind No. 1 Quebec. The Nordiques, down 2-1 in the series, led Game 4 by a 2-0 score at Madison Square Garden. Joe Sakic seemingly scored to make it 3-0, but New York’s Alexei Kovalev went down from a slash.
Referee Andy Van Hellemond disallowed the goal. The Rangers stormed back to win that game 3-2 in overtime and eventually snared the series. Kovalev, an incredible talent, was a notorious flopper.
It is impossible to believe by today’s standards, but the NHL went public with its dismay. “Upon reviewing videotapes and interviewing Van Hellemond, it is clear (he) erred in judgment,” Commissioner Gary Bettman said in a statement, adding the official was “reprimanded and disciplined for his error.”
Understand this was a referee who’d been around a quarter of a century, and, four years later, would be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. He retired from on-ice duties one year after this incident.
It’s been 30 seasons since this happened, but it had a lasting effect. In CBA negotiations, officials fought hard to prevent this public shaming, to the point where it's gone too far the other way. (It would do NHL referees and linesmen a lot of good to explain things from time to time.)
Wedgewood clearly wasn’t faking it, but the spectre of a big goal being disallowed by acting looms large over officials. And, it’s no coincidence this occurred at a time when embellishment is back like an unwanted guest.
There were zero fines for this all of last season, a positive sign things were trending in the right direction. All of sudden there’ve been three in one month, the most recent on Dec. 23. New Jersey and Tampa Bay were just as angry as Bednar when Timo Meier and Nikita Kucherov were ejected from games where the players they hit came back moments after the penalties were assessed.
All of this is no bueno. None of it is good. If it doesn’t stop, Bednar’s won't be the last freakout, and there will be a major controversy on a much bigger stage.
. No that's his daughter.
