Quote:
Originally Posted by Sample00
How does that not get called. Slashing at the very least. And whoever said it, you were right. The referee can clearly see it!  |
The screenshot on the youtube looks damning, but the video tells a different story, as the ref starts skating up ice at the same instant as the spear (ergo his eyes were likely looking more up ice). Maybe he caught something in periphery vision (though by his angle he may not have actually seen Dell's action), but to say he saw it clearly and did nothing contradicts both Occam's and Hanlon's razors.
All four zebras missing it is pretty shocking, but I can see how it might be possible that they didn't see the stick work and assumed it was a leg out trip (which based on Dell's position, needs to be an interference penalty).
For me, this comes back to the need for a video official in radio contact (like rugby) with the on-ice officials, mostly looking at a few things:
- puck across the line (shots the ring in/out quickly)
- blatant unsportsmanlike conduct behind the play
- puck over the glass penalties (as an aside, I still don't see any reason this should be any different than icing)
- expediting the video review/challenge process
They should have a black and white ruling within 30 seconds on the first three items. The clock could start ticking on other video reviews a lot faster, and if there isn't a clear resolution in 90 seconds, call on the ice stands.
It's an extra job for officials - the same refs that ref a game on Tuesday could be the video ref on Wednesday. They're all on the same team doing the same job, it's not just an NHL suit catching their misses in real-time.