There were two huge clues—three really if you want to include the video replay—that the Nashville Predators got shafted Saturday on Alexander Radulov’s non-goal early in what became a 4-2 loss Saturday to the Detroit Red Wings in Game 2.
• One: Predators G.M. David Poile, known for his classy, quiet and reserved approach, didn’t even wait until the game’s end to air his grievances to reporters. During the second intermission, Poile explained why Radulov’s goal, which would have given the Predators their first lead of the series, should have counted: The puck crossed the goal line before the net was dislodged. |
 |
• Two: The NHL issued a statement to explain why there was no video review—which would have validated the Predators’ assertion. The play was not reviewable because the referee, Dan Marouelli in this case, had judged the play to have been dead.
The statement continued: “Rule 32.2 states: As there is a human factor involved in blowing the whistle to stop play, the Referee may deem the play to be stopped slightly prior to the whistle actually being blown. The fact that the puck may come loose or cross the goal line prior to the sound of the whistle has no bearing if the Referee has ruled that the play has been stopped prior to this happening.”
That sounds good, but unfortunately for the league, this doesn’t gibe with Marouelli’s on-ice explanation that amateur lip-readers from Moose Jaw to Miami could clearly interpret as “The net was off.” Nothing about his intent to blow the whistle. If the issue was when the net became unhinged, then it is reviewable on video, either upstairs at Joe Louis Arena or at Central Command in Toronto.
The statement makes the league look like Bill Clinton parsing verbs. You can’t unring the bell, but why not just apologize to the Predators and move on? Mistakes happen, but let’s not compound error with arrogance, a dodge or a swerve.
If the goal had counted, it would have been a huge lift for Nashville. In the first three days of the playoffs when the road team scored first, it went 5-1. The sole loss was the Colorado Avalanche’s overtime setback in Game 2 at Minnesota. That stat changed to 6-1 after the Dallas Stars dusted off the Anaheim Ducks again in Game 2 of their series Saturday.
Culprits
The Predators have reason to be miffed, but they could also point a finger at themselves. Their top two scorers, Jason Arnott and J.P. Dumont, haven’t cracked the score sheet and haven’t done much threatening in that regard either.
Parting shots…
Chris Chelios played his 248th game Saturday to break Patrick Roy’s record for most playoff appearances. One of the more remarkable aspects of Chelios’ career is that he reached the Cup finals with all three of his teams. As a point of reference, Mark Messier, as great as he was, never even reached the playoffs in three seasons with Vancouver after winning Cups in Edmonton and New York. …
Headline of the day, courtesy of the Philadelphia Daily News website: “Thoresen: One Tough Nut.”
Victor Chi is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles. He covers the NHL and is a regular contributor to Sporting News.
| 
