Linesman decides, when players reach the faceoff dot, which one he expects would reach the puck first (so not just who gets there first, but who's going faster etc.) Whistles if he thinks the Dman would get there, waves it off if he thinks the forwards would get there. Subjective call, but not a very tough one, and much easier for him to see than who touches the puck first at the boards.
Basically, it's icing, but when the race reaches the hash marks, the linesman makes a judgement about whether the puck is really up for grabs. If he deems the D man is gonna get, he blows the whistle, but if he thinks the opposing forward has a shot at it, the race is allowed to proceed to the wall.
EDIT: or, just what BRS said.
Is it me or does Erat always seem invisible and a total nonfactor in games?
He and Brouwer both tend to ghost out at even-strength.Is it me or does Erat always seem invisible and a total nonfactor in games?
Unbelievable. A low scoring game and played like crap, but totally in it.
Hey, with a goaltending matchup like this it makes quite a bit of sense.
Huge, huge fan of Green's lazy backfoot fade outlets.