The story was basically writing itself. Pontiacs give poor performance Friday, suffer loss, and say they will come out stronger next game. Next game happens, Pontiacs stay true to their word, dominate game, leave nothing to chance and pick up the much deserved win.
Or wait…I did it again.
The Pontiacs did not win Saturday. They deserved a win, but decisions were made and penalties were called and things went downhill fast.
Hockey, like most sports, relies heavily on officiating. Junior hockey, as opposed to pro hockey, does not have the luxury of video review. This mixture of heavy reliance and a lack of video review can put immense pressure on officials to make the right call – something they typically do.
But that was not so Saturday night. The officials on this night made bad calls; some might say wrong calls.
Now, you may ask how I am so certain these were wrong/bad calls. Well, I was sitting in the stands with my eyes open for one. Also, I had the fortune to watch the ‘penalties' replayed on video, in slow motion, three times following the game – something the ref and linesman were unable to do on the ice; I'll give them that.
But seriously, a battle for the puck and a veteran ref calls a hooking penalty? Then, as if that was not enough, an incidental face plant into Kevin Carthy's midsection and a bloody lip results in a double minor for high sticking. Worse yet, the linesman, not the referee, made the second bad call.
Topping that farce of a call is the fact that the linesman was not even looking at the play when it actually occurred. I guess he was just really eager to make a call after he spotted a St. Albert player lying on the ice clutching his face as if he'd been shot.
The linesman was actually looking at the Pontiacs bench when the player scratched his lip on Carthy's pants. If he actually saw what happened, he would have likely skated over, as he did, and separate the players after the whistle had been blown – without making a call for something that did not happen and he should not be making.
If the Pontiacs are unwilling to use the officiating as an excuse for the loss, I will. The officials blew it on this night. Sure they can't null the loss, but in my league there would be a case of beer sitting outside the dressing room, care of the ref – I guess that's why I play beer leagues.