Officiating in the playoffs

[dissentowner]

What can the NHL do to rectify the absolute terrible officiating in the playoffs so far? How do you hold these guys accountable for doing a bad job or blowing calls every single game?

[4X4]

At least the Flames got wise and outsmarted them by ditching the playoffs. That'll teach 'em.

[dino7c]

They have all become over sensitive mall cops

[Brick]

I have enjoyed watching the calls against the Ducks.

[CalgaryFan1988]

A lot of "close" offside calls they are probably letting go now, because if a goal is scored its reviewed.

I'd bet the number of offsides called per game are down.

[TheScorpion]

Honestly, it's terrible.

The refs are penalizing all these other teams left and right, while the Oilers haven't been called for anything in weeks!

[jayswin]

Originally Posted by CalgaryFan1988

A lot of "close" offside calls they are probably letting go now, because if a goal is scored its reviewed.

I'd bet the number of offsides called per game are down.

I'm not sure I follow your logic, if the refs were biasing their calls to not look stupid wouldn't they be making more offside calls?

If they call an onside play offside it's over right there, blown dead, no review. If they let close offsides go that's when a team can score and then a review can overturn their call.

[Robbob]

I see what he is saying. With the replay there they may allow a little more leeway for those close ones as if it leads to a scoring event it can be reviewed and corrected. Or on the other hand this shows how difficult a simple call like offside is with the speed and all the other things (linesman positioning, player obstructions, black blade/ tape etc.)

[Northendzone]

Originally Posted by TheScorpion

Honestly, it's terrible.

The refs are penalizing all these other teams left and right, while the Oilers haven't been called for anything in weeks!

they have been been called as in "5 minute call for the McDavid foursome"

[FlamesAddiction]

This is why I am in favour of developing technology to make things more automated.

I have no doubt that some officials are biased, while others are just slackers or plain bad at their jobs.

[Erick Estrada]

Seeing I don't have a vested interest in any team I can say objectively that this has been as poor a round of officiating as I can remember in recent memory. The NHL is getting close to CFL levels of official incompetence. I wish they would be more like the NFL and just call it by the book rather than the BS makeup call stuff, putting the whistles away at various times, and calling what they think they saw over what they saw with their own eyes. I also really hate how they make an obstruction call like hooking on a team and then the exact play happens a few minutes later and no call. There's just no consistency and it looks bad.

Then you have the biases that some teams play the right way and therefore shouldn't be as penalized vs teams with reputations. The Red Wings benefitted from this thinking from officials for well over a decade and it seem the torch has been passed to the Blackhawks. Sorry but things need to be black and white for all 30 teams as when you see a team like the Hawks get substantially more powerplays than their opponents there's something going on as they are certainly not the poster boys for discipline.

[Cecil Terwilliger]

Originally Posted by jayswin

I'm not sure I follow your logic, if the refs were biasing their calls to not look stupid wouldn't they be making more offside calls?

If they call an onside play offside it's over right there, blown dead, no review. If they let close offsides go that's when a team can score and then a review can overturn their call.

No it is definitely the opposite of this. Like 1988 said I think the refs know it'll get reviewed if they call nothing so they're letting it go. They would look far dumber in your scenario.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

Seeing I don't have a vested interest in any team I can say objectively that this has been as poor a round of officiating as I can remember in recent memory. The NHL is getting close to CFL levels of official incompetence. I wish they would be more like the NFL and just call it by the book rather than the BS makeup call stuff, putting the whistles away at various times, and calling what they think they saw over what they saw with their own eyes. I also really hate how they make an obstruction call like hooking on a team and then the exact play happens a few minutes later and no call. There's just no consistency and it looks bad.

.

Make up calls and inconsistency is what drives me nuts as well. Something should either be a penalty or not.

I will give the officials a break somewhat though because I think they are under pressure from higher-ups to keep games tame and to keep them within that 2.5 hour TV timeslot.

When the score gets out of hand in NHL games or when bad calls are made, some teams become frustrated and undisciplined, therefore they hand out "make-up" calls to relieve some of the hard feelings and avoid the time delays that scrums and fights cause.

And the NHL is still the ugly duckling of the major professional sports leagues in the U.S. The NFL, MLB and even the NBA can get away with it more when games run long and networks need to adjust. With the NHL, the networks hold a lot more power, therefore the officials are under more pressure to control the flow more and we see them letting infractions go, especially late in games.

[Weitz]

I just use this now when my friends complain about refs hating their team. Just watch other hockey and the refs are just bad all around.

[Benched]

They've been abnormally bad this year.

[SuperMatt18]

It's not just NHL.

MLB was criticized for their umpires and strike zones throughout last years playoffs.

NFL refs have been heavily criticized for the last 5-6 years for always blowing calls.

NBA is actually on a bit of a upswing after some reffing scandals a few years back, but still lots of talk about how star players get too much benefit of the doubt with calls.

Soccer has always been bad but just this weekend the EPL had a game that was damn near ruined by the ref featuring a team that is battling for the title.

Really I think it's just more focus than ever before. Better HD feeds, more replays/angles, and social media putting every bad call instantly in our faces has made the problems seem much worse. Plus it's harder for the refs since the players in this sports are bigger, stronger, and faster than ever before, and players are always looking for more ways to game the system as well.

[CroFlames]

I probably have an unpopular opinion, but I wish the regular season was called the way they call the playoffs.

I think the playoffs have the perfect amount of clutch & grab and they let just the right amount of rough stuff happen before intervening.

[SofaProfessor]

Originally Posted by Erick Estrada

I wish they would be more like the NFL...

NSFW!

[Huntingwhale]

I always give the refs the benefit of the doubt. They don't get to use instant replay like we do, with multiple angles. Not only are they human, but both teams are constantly trying to gain the upper hand and manipulating the refs mentality their own way.

But that blown call in the St. Louis/Chicago game last night was something else. In cases like that, it's hard to get on the ref's side. I don't think it's a good idea to have the refs held publicly accountable like many people want. Nothing good can come of that other then satisfying the lust for blood from the general public. But in extreme cases like that, where it's blatantly obvious to the general public AND the NHL authorities that the wrong call was made, someone from the refs' supervision board or something should comment on that. IMO that's too obvious of a blown call to let slide. I can understand missing out on high sticks or missed offsides and such. But a call like that, where you have 2 officials on the ice, and neither of them gives Crawford penalty? That's a detriment to the game.

Someone from the league's head office probably investigated and got the reason it was called that way. But in cases like that, a public statement should be made as to why it was called that way.

[Weitz]

Originally Posted by Huntingwhale

I always give the refs the benefit of the doubt. They don't get to use instant replay like we do, with multiple angles. Not only are they human, but both teams are constantly trying to gain the upper hand and manipulating the refs mentality their own way.

But that blown call in the St. Louis/Chicago game last night was something else. In cases like that, it's hard to get on the ref's side. I don't think it's a good idea to have the refs held publicly accountable like many people want. Nothing good can come of that other then satisfying the lust for blood from the general public. But in extreme cases like that, where it's blatantly obvious to the general public AND the NHL authorities that the wrong call was made, someone from the refs' supervision board or something should comment on that. IMO that's too obvious of a blown call to let slide. I can understand missing out on high sticks or missed offsides and such. But a call like that, where you have 2 officials on the ice, and neither of them gives Crawford penalty? That's a detriment to the game.

Someone from the league's head office probably investigated and got the reason it was called that way. But in cases like that, a public statement should be made as to why it was called that way.

To be fair Crawford got a penalty, they just gave St. Louis 3 phantom penalties.