I was listening to the Flyers Penguins game last night on the radio, and the play by play guy had to ask the colour guy about the rules on icing.
Think about it, what used to be about the simplest thing in hockey is now so complicated that a radio play by play announcer doesn`t even know the rules.
As for penalties, well they change from game to game. Sometimes you can punch a guy in the head, sometimes you cant. Sometimes you can crosscheck someone, sometimes you cant. The rules change from game to game, sometimes period to period.
The NHL is the only sports league outside of the WWE that quite literally has no rules, and the ones the NHL does have have become so complicated even long time fans have no idea what they are.
I was listening to the Flyers Penguins game last night on the radio, and the play by play guy had to ask the colour guy about the rules on icing.
Think about it, what used to be about the simplest thing in hockey is now so complicated that a radio play by play announcer doesn`t even know the rules.
As for penalties, well they change from game to game. Sometimes you can punch a guy in the head, sometimes you cant. Sometimes you can crosscheck someone, sometimes you cant. The rules change from game to game, sometimes period to period.
The NHL is the only sports league outside of the WWE that quite literally has no rules, and the ones the NHL does have have become so complicated even long time fans have no idea what they are.
Actually, it quite literally, has a whole lot of rules that are very clearly defined; in a book no less!
If you think this is the first year or the first time where calls have been missed or the play is rough or icings have been inconsistent, then you haven't been watching the playoffs for very long anyway.
Me...fan since 1972 and no end in sight.
I am cheering for Pittsburgh, but last night's game was brilliantly entertaining. Loved every minute of it. Loved the emergence of Claude Giroux (I knew he was a star - but he did something last night that would be considered special). The Pens were horrible defensively and the Flyers jumped on them like "caged apes" as Bryz would say.
In fact, part of the appeal to me is that the games are so fast that it makes it difficult TO BE consistent. What that shows is not a game without rules, it shows a game played almost completely on the edge.
OR......given the inconcistency lately in terms of what's icing and what's not, the rules aren't exactly clear anymore and they would need to go to the rule book......
What radio broadcast was this? Is Mike Lange not the Penguins radio PXP? That guy's only been around forever. Pretty sure whoever it was was being facetious. Context would be nice.
What radio broadcast was this? Is Mike Lange not the Penguins radio PXP? That guy's only been around forever. Pretty sure whoever it was was being facetious. Context would be nice.
Not sure, the feed was on 1410 in Vancouver.
And the announcer was absolutely not being facetious, he wasn't sure about the rules.
What radio broadcast was this? Is Mike Lange not the Penguins radio PXP? That guy's only been around forever. Pretty sure whoever it was was being facetious. Context would be nice.
He is. And Phil Bourque as the color guy, while not a Mensa applicant, I'd like to think understands the rule.
If OP had told us it was Steigerwald, I'd find this totally believeable.
The NHL doesn't employ the radio announcers on your local radio station. He's uninformed, that's all.
And any actual fan of the game can agree that the rules aren't complicated.
I'm in Vancouver, it wasn't a local feed.
It has gone from every viewer knowing for themselves if a play is icing to every viewer waiting to see if, in the linesmen opinion, it's icing. That is not a good thing.
Lange has been with the Pens since 1974, Steiggy 1980, Bourque and Errey had long careers playing in the NHL. Steiggy can be a putz at times, but they all know hockey.
So don't watch it.
If you think this is the first year or the first time where calls have been missed or the play is rough or icings have been inconsistent, then you haven't been watching the playoffs for very long anyway.
Me...fan since 1972 and no end in sight.
I am cheering for Pittsburgh, but last night's game was brilliantly entertaining. Loved every minute of it. Loved the emergence of Claude Giroux (I knew he was a star - but he did something last night that would be considered special). The Pens were horrible defensively and the Flyers jumped on them like "caged apes" as Bryz would say.
In fact, part of the appeal to me is that the games are so fast that it makes it difficult TO BE consistent. What that shows is not a game without rules, it shows a game played almost completely on the edge.
Great stuff.
Not correct, icing is a non issue but the level of reffing the last two years is by FAR the worst I've ever seen and I've been watching hockey a bit longer than 1972. Nothing comes close to the sheer and utter garbage, reffing, game managing, monthly interference by the league re reffing. It is truly as the original poster says, no one in the league has a clue what a penalty is or isn't and that includes all penalties, from tripping to hooking to goalie interference to fighting. It's a disgrace.
Maybe he asked the rules so that the announcer could explain it to casual fans who don;t watch hockey and are into it for the playoffs. They do this pretty often on TV and radio broadcasts, fans have to learn the rules somehow.
Every single game, more than once, an icing is called off for a mystery reason. It has nothing to do with the Pittsburgh announcers, what the OP said is true. The same goes for penalties and kicking guys out of face-offs. The standards of those things change on a game to game basis for no rhyme or reason.
Every single game, more than once, an icing is called off for a mystery reason. It has nothing to do with the Pittsburgh announcers, what the OP said is true. The same goes for penalties and kicking guys out of face-offs. The standards of those things change on a game to game basis for no rhyme or reason.
NHL refereeing is ridiculously inconsistent.
The reason the icing is waived off is because the linesman either saw something you didn't or he made a different call in judgement than you did. If you asked the linesman who waived it off he would have a reason that he could quote from the rule book as to why he waived it off.
Is it inconsistent? yes, but you would be as well.
The reason the icing is waived off is because the linesman either saw something you didn't or he made a different call in judgement than you did. If you asked the linesman who waived it off he would have a reason that he could quote from the rule book as to why he waived it off.
Is it inconsistent? yes, but you would be as well.
Fair enough. However the same play, or a similar play will happen later in the game and the icing/penalty/face-off ejection won't be called the same as it was before. That's the point I was trying to make.
