Mike Matheson Interence on Eric Staal – Tough Call Review
The NHL’s department of player safety issued a fine for this hit by Mike Matheson on Eric Staal, and that’s fine with me. Don’t call it a reverse hit. Call it like any other.
I was happy with the fine too…I was NOT happy with the officials who called this game though; had they actually assessed a penalty here, maybe things wouldn't have gotten quite so heated, with the game maybe NOT escalating into a sh1tsh0w extrordinaire. This is a huge example of the impact bad refereeing can have on a game, and is just more evidence that refs should be held accountable to the media and to the NHL after games. I'm not saying the NHL isn't partly to blame, what with their deliberately inconsistently-applied rules, but this game was in the 99th-percentile of terrible officiating, and the league is only responsible for games like this if they keep hiring referees (or refrain from firing them) who screw up like this more than once or twice.
100% agreed. Bottom line is a very dangerous hit on a player who is in a vulnerable position as Staal did not expect the hit coming. Hopefully, the fine will deter others from doing the same.
I fully agree with the fine, I'm just irritated by the fact that Denisenko got nothing for boarding Xhekaj and Sam Bennett didn't get supplemental discipline for kneeing Jordan Harris
6 Comments
I was happy with the fine too…I was NOT happy with the officials who called this game though; had they actually assessed a penalty here, maybe things wouldn't have gotten quite so heated, with the game maybe NOT escalating into a sh1tsh0w extrordinaire. This is a huge example of the impact bad refereeing can have on a game, and is just more evidence that refs should be held accountable to the media and to the NHL after games. I'm not saying the NHL isn't partly to blame, what with their deliberately inconsistently-applied rules, but this game was in the 99th-percentile of terrible officiating, and the league is only responsible for games like this if they keep hiring referees (or refrain from firing them) who screw up like this more than once or twice.
Agreed ; jncompetent officiating
100% agreed. Bottom line is a very dangerous hit on a player who is in a vulnerable position as Staal did not expect the hit coming. Hopefully, the fine will deter others from doing the same.
I fully agree with the fine, I'm just irritated by the fact that Denisenko got nothing for boarding Xhekaj and Sam Bennett didn't get supplemental discipline for kneeing Jordan Harris
Definitely interference
Agreed, this could also be unsportsmanlike penalty, it’s like premeditated sucker punch.