Habs' Game Two Win over Bruins

Boston Bruin Jeremy Reich's goat horns are probably not all that readily apparent these days, even after his tripping penalty on Montreal's Andrei Markov in overtime of game two led to Alex Kovalev's 3-2 game-winning goal. No, Bruins fans have found a new scapegoat in the wake of a newly dug two-game series hole Saturday night. Conveniently, they come pre-dressed in zebra garb all fit and tied to be preyed upon.

When referee Mike Leggo made the aforementioned tripping call, Reich's teammate Shawn Thornton was already busy serving the second half of his double minor for high sticking, drawn at the end of the third period when he caught Tom Kostopolous on his none-too-precious mug. Considering the fact that seconds beforehand, on the Reich play, as pointed out by Don Cherry in his post-game CBC segment, Markov high sticked Reich, the whole incident stinks to high hell. When you then take into account that the penalty was the fourth-straight served by the Bruins, from late in the third period, no less, it then stinks to kingdom come. However, while there is reason to be infuriated by the alleged partiality of the referees, it's not for the reasons you think.

Firstly, Reich's tripping call was a penalty, no doubt about it. Second of all, his high stick to the face of Markov just a few seconds prior was something most everyone watching at home and in the Bell Centre most certainly missed. Referees are not infallible, and, so, they deserve some slack for missing calls from time to time. Finally, there was little to be done about Thornton's high sticking penalty. It had to be called. This is where it gets interesting, though. Rewinding a few minutes, the Bruins were penalized twice just after they had tied the score 2-2, thereby erasing a once-two-goal deficit. Each of the two penalties, to Reich and Glen Metropolit, respectively, were of the questionable variety. There is clearly a reason, likewise, for that.

Kovalev was off for slashing when David Krejci knotted the game at two. That's what prompted all the nonsense on the night. Kovalev, who ironically won the game for the Habs, had just missed an opportunity on a shorthanded breakaway when Aaron Ward proceeded to hold him down on the ice. When he was finally let go, Kovalev then hit Ward on the leg with his stick. Was it a slash? Absolutely. Was it a penalty? Should never have been. Sure, it was retaliatory and refs tend to frown on those types of infractions, but it clearly was a love tap, if anything, an act out of frustration that liberties were just taken on his person and that no penalty was called then. Logic dictates that if the refs were to give Kovalev a penalty on the play (they did), they should have given one to Ward as well (they didn't). Krejci then scoring on the ensuing power play realized the referees' worst nightmare: They had suddenly become part of the game and were in the process of affecting its outcome. The two Boston penalties to follow were undoubtedly make-up calls to enable Montreal every opportunity to pull ahead once again and to right the boo-boo that had been made. Unfortunately for them, Montreal couldn't make the best of those two power plays, thus allowing the game to go into overtime and adding extra emphasis onto the penalties called therein.

It's best to think of the game, in terms of penalties called, as two separate ones: the game prior to Thornton's high-sticking penalty, and the one after it. Sure, the Bruins got two straight calls against them, in "game two," but Montreal no doubt would have gotten the next one, especially since the game was in overtime and referees traditionally even up those calls as best they can. And that, right there, was the problem with this game and every National Hockey League playoff game past. In trying to call the game right down the middle, referees are doing just the opposite. Penalties should be called as they come, independent of the offending team. That is being fair and square. So, Don Cherry can whine and scream about how his Boston Bruins team got shafted, but the truth of the matter is that Montreal got shafted just as badly in the game as well, and both teams were done an equal injustice each time the referees were looking to right a wrong they themselves had committed. Of course, this can't be proven, but it's as obvious as the sky is blue. And it's been that way since the dawn of time, or, in this case, presumably since the dawn of the NHL.

It's true Kovalev scored on a power play handed down by one of those, excuse the implication, scheming referees, but he's the one that took the shot and the Habs were the ones that won the game. Boston did have more shots on goal (39 to 31), but, the last time anybody checked, the goalie, Carey Price, was still a Hab, a member of Montreal's team. If Boston truly outplayed Montreal on this night, in all facets of the game, they would have won, but they didn't. Kovalev and the Canadiens did. Case closed... Markov's non-call high stick, of course, notwithstanding.

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