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The Detroit Red Wings lost to the Dallas Stars, 3-1, on Wednesday night, and it's possible that the game could have had a far different outcome had the referees not taken a goal away from Brad May at the 6:40 mark of the third period. I'm not one to blame officials for teams losing games, but every once in a while the men in stripes make a call that defies all reason and logic, and this is one of those moments.
Video after the jump.
Referee Denis Larue's explanation? "The whistle had blown to kill the play." Well, there is some truth to that statement: the whistle did blow ... it's just that it didn't occur until three seconds after the puck was already in the net for what would have been a game-tying goal.
This appears to be the "Intent to blow" rule at work.
Rule 32.2 of the NHL rule book: The Referees shall have general supervision of the game and shall have full control of all game officials and players during the game, including stoppages; and in case of any dispute, their decision shall be final. As there is a human factor involved in blowing the whistle to stop play, the Referee may deem the play to be stopped slightly prior to the whistle actually being blown. The fact that the puck may come loose or cross the goal line prior to the sound of the whistle has no bearing if the Referee has ruled that the play had been stopped prior to this happening. In the event of any dispute regarding time or the expiration of penalties, the matter shall be referred to the Referee for adjustment and his decision shall be final. He may use the Video Goal Judge to assist in rendering the final decision. See Rule 39 – Video Goal Judge.
The only problem, of course, is that unless Larue was intending to blow the whistle while the puck was still on a flight path to the net, that's just an awful ruling on his part.
It's not like the puck was covered up by goaltender Alex Auld or there was a massive scrum in the crease; The shot simply went in the net.
It was a goal. And it should have counted.
Red Wings head coach Mike Babcock on the call in his post-game press conference: "It wasn't blown dead. It was a goal. The guy never meant to blow the whistle. It was a shot.''
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