Boston Bruins Robbed Of Goal By NHL Review Process Again

Boston Bruins Robbed Of Goal By NHL Review Process Again In Loss To The Florida Panthers

The Boston Bruins lost their fifth straight game in regulation for the first time in 2247 days. In other words, it has been over six calendar years since the Bruins have gone on a stretch of games where they haven’t even claimed one point in five consecutive games. While the Bruins have to take the majority of the blame for failing to show up at times in many, if not all of those games, the referees and NHL review process is not doing the team any favors.

The Boston Bruins were losing 2-1 in the third period when Patrice Bergeron seemingly buried a puck past Florida Panther’s goaltender Roberto Luongo. The call on the ice was no-goal, meaning any review would have to be conclusive if the call was to be overturned. It seems like everybody who has seen the play outside of those who reviewed the play in Toronto believe the goal was a good one, yet the Bruins still came out of the review still down 2-1.

“You need to call the league, because I can’t explain it, either,” Claude Julien said. “I’m as baffled as you are right now, and I’ve looked at it many times here before coming in here. It looks like it’s in. It looks very conclusive. That’s two in two games now.” Claude Julien of course was referencing the Bruins’ game against the Rangers the previous night where his team’s tying goal was disallowed.

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“I was shocked,” Patrice Bergeron said. “But at the same time the rules are there, and I guess that’s what they went by.” Patrice Bergeron has never been one to step over any lines, and despite his humble comments, there’s no doubt he disagrees with the call.

“I think it looked pretty clear that the puck was over the line,” said Brad Marchand, who was on the ice along with Patrice Bergeron at the time of the goal. “I don’t know why it wasn’t. From the angle we saw there on the Jumbotron it looked pretty clear. So, it’s very frustrating. It would have been a 2-2 game, and we would have had the momentum, and then they scored shortly after that. So, it ended up ultimately costing us the game.”

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While it’s clear the Boston Bruins players, announcers, coaches, and fans all believe the goal was good, other parties, both neutral and opposed, were confused about the call as well. Claude Julien mentioned after the game that he received a text message from another coach asking about the goal. “It was, ‘WTF, how can that not be a goal?’ ” Julien said. “And that’s coming from somebody who’s neutral.” And if that wasn’t enough, Gerard Gallant, the head coach of the Florida Panthers also chimed in after the game.

“Yeah, I mean, when you looked up at the screen, it looked like it was in,” Gallant said. “But everybody said, you know, when we looked at the video, you couldn’t tell. … Like I said, it’s a tough call, and (the NHL replay crew in) Toronto makes those calls all the time. They’re obviously pretty sure it wasn’t in, so …”

Gallant also said, “You know what? To be honest with you, when I saw it first happen, I thought it was a goal,” Gallant added. “Just because of the way it happened so quick, and (Luongo’s) pad was coming across, and I thought it was a goal. But when I see it on the replay in the radio room, then I said, ‘No, I don’t think it’s a goal.’”

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Regardless of what anybody things about the goal, the Bruins have lost five straight games and are in danger of missing the playoffs for the second straight season. What was once a very commanding security-blanket of points in the Atlantic Division and Eastern Conference is now diminished with the Bruins barely ahead of the Detroit Red Wings and Philadelphia Flyers. The team will need to turn things around quickly if they intend on making the postseason — where anything can happen.