Quote:
Originally Posted by Major Major
It was definitely not in the crease, which is where the complaint from oiler/Jets fans lie.
However, that rule is meant to cover an incidental bump. An incidental trip is always a trip, as is incidental high sticking. It should have been a penalty, but at least the refs noticed their error and made the right call.
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Well, he essentially was in the crease. His left skate wasn’t in the crease. The rule is “goalie in the crease” not “contact in the crease”. Rittich was in the crease. Fell in the crease. Contact was outside the crease.
Would you call delay of game on a goalie for not ‘covering the puck in the crease’ if the goalie was in the crease and gloves outside the crease (almost always the situation)? This is why the refs get some judgement. Rittich wasn’t dramatically out of position and was tripped accidentally.
An incidental trip is definitely not always a trip.