When whining about refereeing came in NHL?

[agent082]

It has been worse year after year. There must been whining always, but when it went too far?

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[JianYang]

Probably since inception and certainly since I started watching about 35 years ago.

It's always been the losing team too.

 

[Panthers Propaganda]

Id wager since 7000BC people have been whining about how the rules are enforced in their sports and who got "robbed".

"Can you believe they let Hermisticles ref that match? What a screw-job".

 

[MrLouniverse]

1995

 

[Chukcha]

it came in 1947 when habs goalie Bill Durnan served as their captain. He spent so much time slowly walking to refs for whining that games actually got longer! So he’s the reason for Rule 6.1: “No goalkeeper shall be entitled to exercise the privileges of Captain or Alternate Captain on the ice.” Probably he's also the reason why goalies are not allowed to cross the red line. Though it would be funny to watch let's say Ron Hextall fighting for the puck near the opponent's net in the final minute of the game

 

[tarheelhockey]

Of course there has always been whining about refs, but it has gotten a LOT worse since the internet and especially streaming video.

It used to be that only the worst of calls caught the attention of the general public. Today the officiating is discussed more than the actual gameplay.

 

[Fixed to Ruin]

I think the first complaint was written on a stone tablet.

 

[pekka55]

Probably after the refs came out and actually told everyone that they're not going by the actual rule book, but instead they call the games by "game management".

That does not make sense to most people.

 

[Ghost of Murph]

It has always been there but I agree that whining seems to keep getting worse. A few reasons:

1) Online sports betting becoming more popular. Bad calls can end up costing people money.

2) Internet/social media. People see others freaking out on social media/forums so they also freak out more than if they didn't see others losing their mind.

3) Huge hd televisions. Easier to spot missed calls on a 75" 4k TV than on a 19" CRT.

4) Refs screw up more because the game is faster and players are bigger than they used to be. Lots of fans don't realize that missed calls are just a part of the sport and generally even out.

 

[zar]

Also see, When was the NHL formed?

When did it get worse? Also see, When did sports radio allow the general public to call into their shows?

When did it get even worse? Also see, When was the internet first created?

Why is it worse today than ever before? Also see, When was social media created?

 

[WatchfulElm]

It started many decades ago when they decided to let humans make the calls and prevent AI from making any of them anymore. Before that, everybody was happy.

 

[Matty Sundin]

Whining and complaining is human nature and been here since the beginning. A city literally rioted in the 50s over a hockey decesion. It’s became more apparent mostly due to social media

 

[Dr Robot]

It’s always existed but it got noticeably worse during covid. Seemed like there was a drop in both empathy and fortitude to accept that the calls don’t always go your way.

 

[pekka55]

It’s always existed but it got noticeably worse during covid. Seemed like there was a drop in both empathy and fortitude to accept that the calls don’t always go your way.

Also doesn't help that it seems to be a criminal offence to say that maybe a ref made a mistake. If a player or coach even suggests that the refs might be human and make mistakes, then they get fined.

 

[Davo Ikinzom]

It seems like there isn't much interest in the Rocket Richard race this year. Why's that?

 

[Mike C]

It has always been there but I agree that whining seems to keep getting worse. A few reasons:

1) Online sports betting becoming more popular. Bad calls can end up costing people money.

2) Internet/social media. People see others freaking out on social media/forums so they also freak out more than if they didn't see others losing their mind.

3) Huge hd televisions. Easier to spot missed calls on a 75" 4k TV than on a 19" CRT.

4) Refs screw up more because the game is faster and players are bigger than they used to be. Lots of fans don't realize that missed calls are just a part of the sport and generally even out.

Great points. Only thing I would say is the whining isn't necessarily worse, just more noticeable because of all the forums available as well as journalists being more apt to spout opinions these days rather than objectively reporting facts

 

[Jumptheshark]

The answer is easy.

People at home watching want to see what they want to see. They only see the calls missed by the ref against their team not all the calls they ref missed against their team (according to the fans of the other teams)

Fans comes from fanatics usually fanatics is a bad thing

 

[Wry n Ginger]

It has been worse year after year. There must been whining always, but when it went too far?

I'm sorry what?!?!

Are you insinuating there is a problem with referring in the NHL? The best league in the history of EVAR?

Bow,if you just want to disseminate whining...that's a longer discussion.

 

[acor]

Always been, always will be.

 

[Oleksiak]

Other sports are taking steps to clean up the problems using technology and making efforts to hold problem officials accountable. The NHL allows career criminals like Kelly Sutherland to openly rig elimination games in the playoffs. Hockey is the only major sport where the officiating in the lower leagues is consistently better than in the highest level. You can't really blame people for being sick of the NHL's refusal to start taking the integrity of the sport seriously.

 

[TheDawnOfANewTage]

The reffing is consistently atrocious and there are no repercussions. NFL and NBA evaluate and promote/demote accordingly. Gary Bettman counts his money and thinks of new ways to make the game worse. Hold the refs accountable and no one will have any reason to bitch, but it’s a f***in clown show out there. The game has evolved and the refs are dumber than ever.

 

[Edgelord]

forever, if you think about it, ancient humans viewed their gods as referees of their world.

 

[My3Sons]

There is nothing new under the sun

 

[57special]

Reffing and decisions have gotten better than in past decades. Replay, and rules, have, for the most part, made for more accurate decisions.

Whining and outright abuse of officials has become worse both in hockey and baseball. It starts in youth leagues, when parents who've never played hockey unload on 14-15 yo refs in Squirt B games. This causes young potential officials and umpires to quit, leaving the officiating to old guys whose legs and eyesight are failing.

Fans are getting what they deserve in youth, and minor hockey. In the NHL, they don't know how lucky they are.

I was a decent player in my day, and was known to be a fairly smart player- good hockey sense. Tried to ref a couple of games, usually stepping in for a no show. Couldn't believe how hard it was.... i was like a deer in headlights.

 

[Reverend Mayhem]

It has been worse year after year. There must been whining always, but when it went too far?

You OK bro?

Anyways, refs are getting so much better. Fans are just seeing more these days because there are like 30000 cameras in the arena instead of like 6 like there should be. We're living in one of my favourite episodes of the Twilight Zone, my man. We just don't know it yet!