Get Used To It

News broke this morning that WADA, the World Anti-Doping Agency, made an unannounced appearance at the Russian women's hockey practice just four days ahead of the 2018 Winter Olympic Games. Upon their arrival, WADA summoned 16 of the 23 players for drug testing, thereby effectively cancelling the team's practice. With the depth of the doping scandal done by the Russians, should we be surprised that the Russians are being scrutinised more heavily than other countries? If there's one piece of advice I can offer to the Russian athletes in Pyeongchang, that advice would be "get used to it" because each victory that Russia posts for a medal of any colour will come with drug testing and scrutiny.

Some will say that this is overkill as the 23 athletes on the ice have already been cleared by the International Olympic Committee already, but I think most people would be happier knowing that the Russian athletes who have been cleared are still clean by Olympic drug testing standards. This shows that the punitive measures handed down by the IOC are working for now.

My hope is that none of the sixteen players pulled off the ice by WADA are found to be using some sort of prohibited substance. It would be a major setback for the Russians in trying to show that they are working towards a more ethical future in sport, and it would absolutely devastate the Russian women's hockey team if additional players were sent home at this point. Russia will open its women's hockey tournament against Canada on Sunday, and they certainly don't need to be shorthanded for that game.

Of course, it wouldn't be the Olympics without some controversy. The Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport found that 13 Russian athletes and two coaches who were banned over a positive doping result were cleared by the CAS, but the IOC has refused to lift their bans in Olympic competition, stating that the IOC would like to see how the CAS came to the conclusion of clearing the athletes and coaches.

Of those cleared by the CAS, four women's hockey players were among them, and they are Ekaterina Lebedeva, Ekaterina Pashkevich, Anna Shibanova, and Ekaterina Smolentseva. Because the IOC has yet to allow them back into any Olympic competition, they will not be rejoining the ice hockey team in Pyeongchang.

I'd expect a ton of scrutiny for the next two weeks when it comes to the Russian athletes. I'd say that's pretty par for the course when one considers the depth and scope of the state-wide doping that happened in Sochi and leading up to Rio de Janeiro. If you're a Russian athlete, this is your way of life now, and there isn't much that you can do other than peeing in a sample cup and allowing people to draw blood.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Rundown - Week 14

Four games remain with two being struck from the calendar this weekend. Twelve points are up for grabs among the eight Canada West women's hockey teams, and the final two playoff spots have yet to be decided. Positions are still up for grabs among all eight teams, but there are some mathematical situations that loom on the horizon when it comes to positioning in the standings. Let's get rolling with some of those mathematics here on The Rundown!

MANITOBA at LETHBRIDGE: Basically, any loss by Lethbridge this weekend against the juggernaut that is Manitoba would spell the end of their playoff chances since they hold no tie-breaker situations. Manitoba was looking to move closer to securing the first-overall seed in Canada West, so this Friday game was important to both teams. The only problem? Only one team put goals on the board in this Friday night game.

Manitoba's Rachel Dyck and Lethbridge's Alicia Anderson didn't allow a goal through opening twenty minutes. Anderson stopped all 12 shots she saw while Rachel made three saves. The scoring would start in the second frame, however, and it would be a couple of career-firsts that got everything going.

On a beautiful tic-tac-toe passing play, Jordyn Zacharias fed Alanna Sharman who found Emilie Massé, and the winger potted her first Canada West goal in beating Anderson at 14:01! We weren't done with the firsts, though, as three minutes later, we'd see another career-first! Jenai Buchanan, often known for her tenacious defence on the blue line, took a pass from Caitlyn Fyten and found room on the blocker side past Anderson for her first Canada West goal as well! Buchanan's goal came at 17:25, and the Bisons had a two-goal cushion through two periods!

The Bisons would play some stifling defence in the third period as they limited Lethbridge to just five shots in thwarting a comeback. The Bisons were rewarded with a goal late in the period when Nicole Carswell potted an Alanna Sharman feed at 17:57 to prevent any chance of Lethbridge tying the game as the Bisons skated to the 3-0 victory. Rachel Dyck posted her fourth shutout of the season in stopping all 19 shots she faced while Alicia Anderson was superb in the loss as she made 37 stops.

The unfortunate reality sunk in after the game, however, as this loss to the Bisons spelled the end of any chance of the Pronghorns making the Canada West playoffs.

MANITOBA at LETHBRIDGE: With the Pronghorns in spoiler mode for Saturday's game, the pressure was on the Bisons to try and take all six points from Lethbridge. With no pressure felt by the Pronghorns, could they pull off the upset and try to derail Manitoba's run at first-place?

The visitors would find the scoreboard first in this game. Jordyn Zacharias was sent in on Anderson on a partial breakaway off a great pass by Emilie Massé, and Zacharias made a great deke to fake out Anderson as she fired the puck into the wide-open right side of the net at 8:13 and the 1-0 Manitoba lead! The Pronghorns, however, would tie this game up late in the period on the power-play when Kirana Stocker's shot was stopped by Rachel Dyck, but Madison Toppe would jam home the rebound under the netminder at 18:49 to make this a 1-1 game through one period!

The second period featured no scoring, so we'll jump to the third period of this deadlocked game. Tricia Van Vaerenbergh's shot low on the blocker side on the power-play found enough room past Dyck to dent twine at 2;47, and the Pronghorns had the early 2-1 lead in the third period! The Bisons, sensing disaster, upped the tempo and were finally rewarded late in the period. Makaela Fisher and Sheridan Oswald broke in on Anderson on a 2-on-1, and Oswald fed Fisher who went high glove-side on Anderson for the equalizer at 15:21 to make it 2-2! The final horn would sound with the game still tied, so it was off to overtime!

The four-on-four overtime period solved nothing despite Manitoba being whistled for a penalty late in the period, but the second overtime period would see a winner. With Kyra Greig sitting in the sin bin for tripping, Erica Rieder's blast was stopped, but Nastasha Kostenko would find the loose puck and chip it over Anderson for the winner at 2:26 to help Manitoba to the 3-2 double-overtime victory! Dyck was solid with 24 saves on 26 shots while Anderson deserved a better fate after stopping 34 shots on this day.

REGINA at CALGARY: A win by either team combined with a loss by Lethbridge would eliminate the Pronghorns on this night, and both Calgary and Regina were needing that win to pull ahead of the other in the standings! Regina, as a secondary note, needed to win both in regulation but a combined three goals or more if they wanted to win the tie-breaker with Calgary in case they remained tied in the standings. In knowing this, Regina was the far more aggressive team in the opening frame, but they couldn't solve Calgary's Kelsey Roberts on 15 attempts! At the other end, Morgan Baker was perfect on all five shots she faced, and we'd go scoreless through the first period.

The game's opening goal would be found just 2:13 in to the second period when Delaney Frey tapped home a rebound past Baker.

W🏒 | 1, 2, 3 chances and the Dinos score! Delaney Frey lifts the puck over the goalies pad and opens the scoring just over two minutes into the second period! #GoDinos pic.twitter.com/BnDkGAuoVw

— UCalgary Dinos (@UCDinos) February 3, 2018

Frey's marker would put Calgary ahead 1-0, but that lead would only last for about seven-and-a-half minutes. Kylee Kupper's individual effort that saw her circle the Dinos zone before firing a shot towards Roberts that somehow eluded the netminder at 8:53 would tie the game at 1-1. Both teams would press for more, but the game would remain knotted up at 1-1 through 40 minutes.

The third period started with another early Calgary goal as Diane Hitchings scored her first Canada West marker at 2:08 off a crazy deflection that saw Ireland South's clearing attempt go in off Hitching's stick!

W🏒 | Dinos Score! Dianne Hitchings in front of the net gives the Dinos their second lead! 2 minutes into the third period and the score is 2-1! #GoDinos pic.twitter.com/KIP2WL7xhC

— UCalgary Dinos (@UCDinos) February 3, 2018

For all the effort put forth by the Cougars, it seemed as though Kelsey Roberts would be unbeatable again in the third period. A late penalty to Calgary's Holly Reuther for corss-checking gave Regina a 6-on-4 advantage late, and it would pay off. Tamara McVannel's shot was stopped by Roberts, but Emma Waldenberger had position on her check and she potted the rebound with two seconds left in the game to make it 2-2, sending this game to overtime!

The four-on-four overtime would prove fruitful for Calgary senior Kate Lumley! With 18 seconds to play in the first overtime period, Lumley came over the bench and called for the pass in the slot where Paige Michalenko spotted her.

W🏒 | Patience is a virtue....beautiful pass! Beautiful goal! Kate Lumley wins it for the Dinos in overtime! #GoDinos pic.twitter.com/6GFgD3K9g4

— UCalgary Dinos (@UCDinos) February 3, 2018

Lumley's goal at 4:48 secured the 3-2 overtime win for the Dinos, and moved them into sixth-spot ahead of the Regina Cougars by a single point! Roberts was outstanding in the win as she made 38 stops to give Calgary a chance while Baker stopped 17 shots in the overtime loss.

REGINA at CALGARY: With Regina unable to win the tie-breaker situation now, they needed a regulation win on Saturday. Calgary also needed the win to stay ahead of Regina with a tough series against Manitoba on the horizon, but it would be the visitors who struck first in this one. Kylee Cupper and Lilla Carpenter-Boesch found themselves on a two-on-one just after the opening face-off, and Kupper would feed Carpenter-Boesch whose shot found the five-hole on Kelsey Roberts just 21 seconds into this game for the 1-0 Regina lead! The teams settled down after that early offensive burst. While chances were seen at both ends, the 1-0 lead would hold through the intermission.

A scoreless second period saw numerous chances at both ends again as the Cougars and Dinos went toe-to-toe in the middle frame, but no pucks would find the net. With no goals there, it was off to the third period, and we'd see the home side tie it up early. After a Cougars penalty expired, Georgina Williams' slap shot from the point avoided the traffic in front and avoided Morgan Baker to bulge the netting behind Baker for her first Canada West goal at 1:59 to make it a 1-1 game!

W🏒 | Tie game! Georgina Williams with a slap shot for her first career goal as a Dino! 1-1 with 17 minutes remaining in the game! #GoDinos pic.twitter.com/eYsPjglGNs

— UCalgary Dinos (@UCDinos) February 3, 2018

The two teams would traded chances over the next fifteen minutes before the Regina Cougars finally solved Roberts once more. Kylee Kupper's shot would be stopped by Roberts, but Carpenter-Boesch went to the net and poked home a rebound past Roberts at 15:56 to make it 2-1 Regina! Calgary would push at the end over the final 90 seconds with the extra attacker, but the final horn would sound with Regina still leading, giving them the 2-1 victory! Morgan Baker bounced back from the overtime loss with an 18-save performance in the win on Saturday while Roberts made 20 saves in the loss.

MOUNT ROYAL at UBC: Both teams needed points as Mount Royal looked to solidify their fifth-place position while UBC needed to find a way to get back to second-place. What I don't think either team expected is that there would be no scoring in this game through 70 minutes and 44 shots!

The Thunderbirds dominated the game over the sixty minutes of regulation time, outshooting the Cougars by a 22-10 advantage. Zoe DeBeauville was stellar in denying all the shots she faced while Tory Micklash very calmly turned aside the ten shots she faced in the UBC net. There was a crossbar hit, a couple of goal posts hit, and some timely saves, but it was 0-0 when the horn at the end of the third period sounded.

The overtime periods saw the chances continue. Cassandra Vilgrain was stonewalled on a breakaway while the Cougars' two-on-one later in the period was once again stopped by Micklash. Nothing would be decided in the extra ten minutes, so we went to the skills competition for a winner. In the second round, Kathleen Cahoon made a gorgeous move before sliding the puck between DeBeauville's legs to put UBC up 1-0 in the shootout. Rachel Pittz needed to score to keep this game going, but Micklash denied her chance as UBC takes this game by a 1-0 score! Micklash was outstanding in her third clean sheet of the season with 11 saves while Debeauville takes the shootout loss despite recording the 32-save shutout for her sixth blanking of the season.

MOUNT ROYAL at UBC: Mount Royal's single point the night before helped, but they needed more. UBC also needed more points to try and leap past both Saskatchewan and Alberta, so it was another big game on Saturday on the left coast! The home side, though, seemed ready as they struck early and often as Madison Patrick at 3:25 and Emily Costales at 8:19 had the T-Birds up by a pair over the Cougars. While the T-Birds controlled possession, Mount Royal did get their chances as the period would close in a tie at 7-7 for shots, but the two that eluded Zoe DeBeauville had UBC out in front 2-0.

The control by the Thunderbirds continued in the second period, but that control was interrupted by an Emily Costales high-sticking penalty. Mount Royal would strike on the power-play while Costales sat. Tatum Amy ripped a shot past Amelia Boughn after she took a pass from Rachel Piitz at 12:11, and Mount Royal trailed 2-1. Another power-play moments later proved fruitless for the Cougars, and they'd trail by one goal going into the third period.

The third period was literally all UBC as they absolutely peppered DeBeauville with seventeen shots! None would find the back of the net, though, as DeBeauville was lights-out, but the Cougars only managed one shot on Boughn and it was turned aside. Without any additional offence, the Thunderbirds would emerge as the victors on Saturday with a 2-1 victory! Boughn made 11 stops for the win while DeBeauville did all she could with 29 saves in the loss.

ALBERTA at SASKATCHEWAN: In what was the marquee match-up of the weekend, the Pandas traveled to Saskatoon for a date with the Huskies. Both teams had a shot at second-place with six points this weekend, but neither team was willing to give up any points without a fight. It would be Alberta who was the more aggressive team early on, testing Jessica Vance with several shots in the opening frame, but they would find no results. Kirsten Chamberlin saw fewer shots, but she made a couple of key saves to keep pace with Vance. After one period, Alberta led 1-5 in shots, but the game was still a 0-0 draw.

Saskatchewan came out more aggressive in the second period as the home side pushed for the lead. They would get that lead off the stick of their most accomplished player. Kaitlin Willoughby grabbed a loose puck in the neutral zone, turned on the jets to get by the Pandas defenders, and she went bar-down on Chamberlin at 5:27 for her 50th goal in Canada West play to put Saskatchewan up 1-0! Alberta would rally back with some pressure, but the Huskies continued to use their speed to keep the Pandas off balance. At the end of the period, the Huskies held the slim 1-0 lead.

Midway through the third period, the Pandas found an equalizer on the power-play when Kennedy Ganser banged home a rebound off a Hannah Olenyk shot past Vance at 11:11 to tie the game at 1-1 in a period that saw both teams trying to end this game in regulation time. Instead, the two teams would go to overtime as the score remained deadlocked at 1-1.

The two overtime periods saw no winner emerge, so it was off to the shootout. This skills competition was highlighted by eight rounds of no goals. In the ninth round, though, Ganser made her mark. On her second shootout attempt of the night, Ganser went over the right shoulder of Vance to put the Pandas up 1-0 in the shootout. That left Chloe Smith needing to score, but Chamberlin added another brick to the wall in denying Smith as the Pandas escaped with the 2-1 shootout victory! Chamberlin stopped 28 shots in the win while Vance suffered the shootout loss while making 27 saves.

ALBERTA at SASKATCHEWAN: Saturday's game brought these two battle-tested teams together again with another three points on the line. After the Pandas took two of three points on Friday, one had to expect the Huskies to make a big push on Saturday. The home squad jumped out in front early as Kori Herner beat Dayna Owen from in close after being setup from behind the net by Brooklyn Haubrich at 3:18 for the 1-0 lead! The early goal seemed to spark the Pandas, but they were unable to beat Jessica Vance through the opening period. Alberta led in shots 11-8, but the Huskies had the all-important 1-0 lead.

Herner would quickly make it a 2-0 game early in the second period when she broke in on Owen on a partial breakaway and went five-hole at the 46-second mark to put Saskatchewan up 2-0! In similar fashion to Friday's game, Saskatchewan was the more aggressive team in the second period, and they gave Alberta very few chances on Vance to try and pull even. After two periods, Saskatchewan led in shots 17-16 and had the 2-0 lead on the scoreboard!

It was pretty clear with how Alberta played the third period that they didn't want to go home with nothing to show in this game. They came out shooting and didn't let up. Alberta got its first goal off a bit of a miscue, though, as Morgan Willoughby hauled down Alex Poznikoff in front of Vance as she was going to the net, and Poznikoff collided with Vance which allowed the puck to get across the goal line before Vance could cover it. The officials conferred, and it was ruled a goal at 5:03 to make it a 2-1 game!

The Pandas kept the pressure on, and they would find the equalizer late. The Pandas forced a turnover in the neutral while Saskatchewan was trying to make a change, and Deanna Morin rushed the puck back and snapped a shot through the five-hole of Vance at 17:51 to tie the game at 2-2!

20 seconds later, though, the Huskies struck back. The Pandas turned the puck over in their own zone, and Kaitlin Willoughby picked up the loose puck. She fed her sister, Morgan, and the younger Willoughby fired a shot glove-side that Owen couldn't snag, putting Saskatchewan back up by a goal! This time, they wouldn't relinquish the lead as they held on for the 3-2 victory! Vance was under siege in the final period, stopping 19 shots alone in the period to come away with the 35-save win while Owen absorbed the loss in a 19-save performance.

CANADA WEST WOMEN'S HOCKEY

School	Record	Points	GF	GA	Streak	Next
Manitoba	17-5-3-1	58	59	39	W7	vs CAL
British Columbia	14-5-4-3	53	56	37	W2	@ ALB
Alberta	13-5-5-3	52	63	39	L1	vs UBC
Saskatchewan	16-7-1-2	52	45	31	W1	@ MRU
Mount Royal	7-15-3-1	28	35	46	L2	vs SAS
Regina	7-14-1-4	27	37	59	W1	vs LET
Calgary	7-16-1-2	25	22	44	L1	@ MAN
Lethbridge	3-17-2-4	17	27	49	L12	@ REG

Teams in yellow have clinched a playoff spot.

The Final Word

With this weekly piece focusing on Canadian university women's hockey, it might be time for an advanced math class. We have some figuring out of these playoff spots, so let's get calculating.

Manitoba needs two points out of the available six points against Calgary to clinch first-overall in Canada West women's hockey for the first time in the program's history. The only tie-break Manitoba owns is over Alberta, so they'll drop to the lower seed if tied with UBC or Saskatchewan.

UBC needs five points to catch Manitoba to capture first-place by a tie-break if Manitoba loses both games to Calgary in regulation time. UBC can also capture first-place by claiming all six points versus Alberta AND having Manitoba earn one or less points versus Calgary. UBC can claim second-place with a split against Alberta AND have Saskatchewan earn three points or less versus Mount Royal. UBC does not own the tie-break over Saskatchewan, so they'll need to remain ahead of Saskatchewan.

Alberta cannot overtake Manitoba for first-place as Manitoba owns the tie-break over Alberta. Alberta can move into second-place by taking four of six points off UBC AND keep pace with Saskatchewan as Alberta owns the tie-break over the Huskies.

Saskatchewan can capture first-place by earning all six points in their series against Mount Royal AND by having Manitoba lose both games in regulation to Calgary as Saskatchewan owns the tie-break over Manitoba. Saskatchewan can move into second-place by:

1. Earning four points over Mount Royal AND have UBC and Alberta split in regulation time as Saskatchewan owns the tie-break over UBC.
2. Earning five points over Mount Royal AND have UBC take four of six points against Alberta as Saskatchewan owns the tie-break over UBC OR have Alberta take four points or less against UBC.
3. Earning all six points over Mount Royal AND have UBC take five of six points against Alberta as Saskatchewan owns the tie-break over UBC OR have Alberta take five points or less against UBC.

For Mount Royal to claim fifth-place, they need to earn the same amount of points in their series against Saskatchewan as Regina does in their series versus Lethbridge to remain one point up on Regina as Regina holds the tie-break over Mount Royal. They also need to remain two points up on Calgary through this weekend as Calgary holds the tie-break over Mount Royal as well.

For Regina to claim fifth-place, they need to:

1. Earn one point against Lethbridge AND have Mount Royal lose both games in regulation time against Saskatchewan AND have Calgary earn two points or less against Manitoba as Calgary holds the tie-break over both Mount Royal and Regina while Regina holds the tie-break over Mount Royal.
2. Earn two points against Lethbridge AND have Mount Royal earn one point or less against Saskatchewan AND have Calgary earn three points or less against Manitoba as Calgary holds the tie-break over both Mount Royal and Regina while Regina holds the tie-break over Mount Royal.
3. Earn three points against Lethbridge AND have Mount Royal earn two points or less against Saskatchewan AND have Calgary earn four points or less against Manitoba as Calgary holds the tie-break over both Mount Royal and Regina while Regina holds the tie-break over Mount Royal.
4. Earn four points against Lethbridge AND have Mount Royal earn three points or less against Saskatchewan AND have Calgary earn five points or less against Manitoba as Calgary holds the tie-break over both Mount Royal and Regina while Regina holds the tie-break over Mount Royal.
5. Earn five points against Lethbridge AND have Mount Royal earn four points or less against Saskatchewan AND have Calgary earn six points or less against Manitoba as Calgary holds the tie-break over both Mount Royal and Regina while Regina holds the tie-break over Mount Royal.
6. Earn all six points against Lethbridge AND have Mount Royal earn five points or less against Saskatchewan.

For Calgary to claim fifth-place, they need to:

1. Earn three points against Manitoba AND have Mount Royal lose both game in regulation time to Saskatchewan AND have Regina earn one point or less against Lethbridge as Calgary owns the tie-break over both teams.
2. Earn four points against Manitoba AND have Mount Royal earn one point or less against Saskatchewan AND have Regina earn two points or less against Lethbridge as Calgary owns the tie-break over both teams.
3. Earn five points against Manitoba AND have Mount Royal earn two points or less against Saskatchewan AND have Regina earn three points or less against Lethbridge as Calgary owns the tie-break over both teams.
4. Earn all six points against Manitoba AND have Mount Royal earn three points or less against Saskatchewan AND have Regina earn four points or less against Lethbridge as Calgary owns the tie-break over both teams.

Got all that? Yes, it was a lot of advanced algebra, some quantitative algorithms, and some calculus to put together all the scenarios, so here's a better thought: tune in Friday to see who does what because a vast number of these variables will be crossed out as the teams figure out things on the ice. It's going to be a big weekend, so find a local arena and enjoy the action!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Nailed It

When you think of the decade of the 1990s, what comes to mind? For younger people, not much as 1990 was some 28 years ago, but for slightly older generations - me included - what stands out when it comes to everything that happened in the 1990s? It would probably be on the list, but I'm not sure how high I would have ranked the television show The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. The ECHL's Wheeling Nailers made that show a priority on Saturday night as they held '90s Night as part of their promotional schedule!

As seen to the right, the Wheeling Nailers skated out on '90s Night wearing uniforms designed by Jeff Tasca and produced by Athletic Knit that look identical to the background of the opening of Saved By The Bell and the logo looking somewhat like the lettering for The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air! These are pretty spectacular jerseys when it comes to the pop culture of the 1990s, and I think Jeff and Athletic Knit did an incredible job on these uniforms that not only have the design on the jerseys, but on the socks as well! With '90s Night looking exceptionally good thanks to the Jeff's vision and Athletic Knit's production, the only thing left in question was whether or not the Nailers could make it a memorable night on the ice!

Did someone say "memorable"?

Bravo, @alfonso_ribeiro. Bravo. #90sNight @WheelingNailers pic.twitter.com/BfNYE33BID

— Indy Fuel (@IndyFuel) February 3, 2018

Alfonso Ribeiro was on-hand for the game between the Nailers and the Indy Fuel, and Mr. Carlton Banks broke out the Carlton Dance in dropping the puck! Ribeiro has always been a good sport when attending events and festivals about doing the "Carlton", and tonight was no different as he broke into character and made this ceremonial puck-drop entirely awesome! Well done, Alfonso!

As always, there was a game to be played after all the '90s fun had subsided. The Nailers jumped out to a 3-1 lead after the first period on the strength of goals by Chris Francis on the power-play, Kevin Schulze on the power-play, and Troy Josephs. The Fuel had tied the game at 1-1 when Johnny McInnis found the back of the net, but that would be the last time these two teams would be even.

Darian Dziurzynski made it 3-2 on a backhander as the Fuel pulled within a goal in the second period, but Troy Josephs would score 38 seconds later to make it 4-2. Francis then made it 5-2 prior to the second intermission. Dziurzynski potted his second goal of the game in the third period, but Freddie Tiffels and Francis, who completed his hat trick, made it a 7-3 victory for the Wheeling Nailers on '90s Night! Adam Morrison picked up his tenth win of the season in a 26-save performance as Wheeling moved to nine games above .500 on the season!

A big win, Carlton Banks doing the Carlton Dance, and some incredible '90s-esque jerseys made for one memorable night in Wheeling, Pennsylvania. I'd say they nailed it!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

There Is No Interference

We heard from reports that the idea of goaltender interference, which had become more a joke than a rule, was discussed at the NHL All-Star Game in working to keep the rule from preventing goals as it seemingly had been used more and more this season. We were told that the league would like to see less goals prevented and more goals awarded when it came to goaltender interference reviews, and that only the most egregious of interference should prevent a goal from being awarded. In last night's game between the Vegas Golden Knights and Winnipeg Jets, I'm pretty certain that we saw egregious interference when James Neal slashed Connor Hellebuyck, but the result was a goal was awarded. It's almost like slashing isn't a form of interference.

First, let's start with the play before we take a look at how this called was made. Here is the play from last night that shows Neal slash Hellebuyck while he has the puck partially covered.

As you can hear on the video above, the goal was a good goal based on there being no goaltender interference on the play. I find this hard to believe, but it seems that slashing is not interference when it comes to this goal, and the two referees simply missed the slashing call on Neal prior to Haula sweeping the puck into the net.

I guess the NHL definitions of what is interference versus what is slashing might be important when it comes figuring out whether this goal should have been called back.

Lt's start with Rule 69.1 in the NHL Rule Book wich deals exclusively with goaltender interference. That rule, in part, reads,

"Goals should be disallowed only if: (1) an attacking player, either by his positioning or by contact, impairs the goalkeeper's ability to move freely within his crease or defend his goal; or (2) an attacking player initiates intentional or deliberate contact with a goalkeeper, inside or outside of his goal crease. Incidental contact with a goalkeeper will be permitted, and resulting goals allowed, when such contact is initiated outside of the goal crease, provided the attacking player has made a reasonable effort to avoid such contact. The rule will be enforced exclusively in accordance with the on-ice judgement of the Referee(s), but may be subject to a Coach's Challenge (see Rule 78.7).

For purposes of this rule, 'contact,' whether incidental or otherwise, shall mean any contact that is made between or among a goalkeeper and attacking player(s), whether by means of a stick or any part of the body. The overriding rationale of this rule is that a goalkeeper should have the ability to move freely within his goal crease without being hindered by the actions of an attacking player. If an attacking player enters the goal crease and, by his actions, impairs the goalkeeper's ability to defend his goal, and a goal is scored, the goal will be disallowed.

In reading this, the second portion of the rule outlined above that reads "'contact,' whether incidental or otherwise, shall mean any contact that is made between or among a goalkeeper and attacking player(s), whether by means of a stick or any part of the body" would be what determines whether a goal is good or disallowed in this scenario. James Neal's stick, regardless of intent, made contact with Connor Hellebuyck while Hellebuyck was in his crease, thereby causing interference meaning the goal should have been disallowed by the way the very rule is written.

Maybe there's some sort of conflicting rule when it comes to slashing? Well, according to Rule 61.1 in the NHL Rule Book, "Slashing is the act of a player swinging his stick at an opponent, whether contact is made or not. Non-aggressive stick contact to the pant or front of the shin pads, should not be penalized as slashing. Any forceful or powerful chop with the stick on an opponent's body, the opponent's stick, or on or near the opponent's hands that, in the judgment of the Referee, is not an attempt to play the puck, shall be penalized as slashing."

As seen in this rule, regardless of whether the stick makes contact or not, the act of swinging a stick at an opponent that involves a "forceful or powerful chop with the stick to an opponent's body" would constitute the act of slashing, and since Neal's slash occurred prior to Haula sweeping the puck into the net, this would negate the goal had the referees made the call on Neal as Haula would have touched the puck, giving him control of the puck, after Neal's offence had occurred.

So how did the officials get this call apparently wrong?

First, they never called the slash on Neal, so the second portion of the argument above about the slashing penalty was never even considered. Neither official raised his arm with the intent on penalizing Neal, so that point above is moot. That leaves us with just the goaltender interference rule, and things get murky here because of one key point in that rule: "the on-ice judgement of the Referee(s)".

Because goaltender interference calls are the final judgment of the officials on the ice, they get the final say on what is and is not goaltender interference. They can speak with the War Room in Toronto and they can get other opinions, but the final ruling comes down to who is wearing the stripes that night on the ice, and the only question they can answer is whether there was sufficient interference with the goaltender to warrant a change in their on-ice ruling on a goal.

In this case, Ghislain Hebert and Kelly Sutherland made the determination that Neal's slash to mask of Hellebuyck did not impede his ability to stop the puck that David Perron had shot seconds earlier as the puck was already under Hellebuyck when Neal's slash occurred. Despite the rule clearly stating that "an attacking player enters the goal crease and, by his actions, impairs the goalkeeper's ability to defend his goal, and a goal is scored, the goal will be disallowed," both Hebert and Sutherland made the determination that Neal's actions did not impair Hellebuyck from making a save. And since slashing isn't reviewable, a penalty cannot be assessed to Neal that would force the sequence of events to reverse the goal call as Neal's slash happened before Haula touched the puck chronologically.

Let's be honest here: no one likes to admit that they're wrong on national television. Hebert and Sutherland are just as human as you or I when it comes to making mistakes, and that's alright. They cannot and should not be faulted for making a mistake when it comes to the speed of this game and/or their positioning that may prevent them from seeing all angles of the same play. That's the entire purpose for the coach's challenge and the reviews of specific plays - it's to help the officials make the correct call.

What astounds me is that the rule on goaltender interference addresses this very situation where a player makes contact with a goaltender with his stick, and neither Hebert nor Sutherland seems to enforce that portion of the rule. It doesn't state when the interference has to occur, but simply that it occurs. In this very case, Neal's swinging stick makes contact with Hellebuyck while in his crease, and that would disallow the goal by rule as it is written.

In the end, Vegas defeated the Jets 3-2 in overtime off a David Perron goal, and the Jets rightfully were upset at the events of this game based on this non-call. I don't think that either or both of Hebert and Sutherland should be reprimanded for what seems to be a missed call, but the NHL needs to really sit down and make the goaltender rule iron-clad. Without a clear sense of how to enforce the rule, this will always be a judgment call for the officials on the ice, and that means each and every referee will have a different standard on what goaltender interference is.

Therein lies the problem with the rule right now as it appears there is no defined rule on what goaltender interference is on a nightly basis.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 280

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, returns to the glorious airwaves of Winnipeg and to your internet streams around the world as we find ourselves down a man. Beans has some business affairs to conduct on this rather chilly evening, so he's taking a one-week leave-of-absence. I won't be doing a "lone wolf" show, though, as I have booked a special guest who should be an outstanding interview. We'll go over career details, schooling, favorite cartoons, and more as we meet the person who will replace Beans' voice on the air tonight at 5:30pm on UMFM!

This vibrant, young lady is Melissa Wronzberg of the Markham Thunder! We'll get Melissa on the phone tonight for an interview as we discover all sorts of interesting facts about her. Among the topics we'll discuss, we'll learn about Melissa's time with the Ryerson Rams in the OUA, her potential career in journalism after graduating from Ryerson's School of Journalism, playing alongside her sister, the important meaning of the number she wears, working in food and beverage at Canada's Wonderland, and the upcoming weekend series against Markham's cross-town rivals in the Toronto Furies which can be seen on Sportsnet on Saturday at 12pm CT/1pm ET! It should be a good chat with Melissa on the show as we learn all about her career, her life, and her aspirations for the full hour!

Y'know, I wanna learn about Melissa, you say, so how do I tune in, you ask? We suggest that you download the UMFM app on your phone or tablet. It's the easiest and most convenient way to listen to any of UMFM's great shows any time of the day, so go get it! Just follow this link on your iDevice or this link for your Android device and get the UMFM app! It's never been easier to tune into The Hockey Show or UMFM! Download the UMFM app today, and don't miss any of our great programming or shows! Of course, you can do the radio thing at 101.5 on the FM dial and you can always listen online via the UMFM website!

If you prefer social media, we try to remain up-to-speed there as well! Email all show questions and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter. You can also post some stuff to Facebook if you use the "Like" feature, and I always have crazy stuff posted there that doesn't make it to the blog or show.

Tonight, Teebz talks with Melissa Wronzberg of the Markham Thunder for the full sixty minutes as we learn all about her on The Hockey Show found only on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM app!

PODCAST: February 1, 2018: Episode 280

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!