Lame Ducks

There is always a human element in officiating, and don't get me wrong, it's not easy, I respect the difficult these men face having the fate and integrity of the game in their hands, however that being said, I wish to make one thing clear- the officiating last night in the Ottawa Senators - Anaheim Ducks game was so poor and so blatantly one sided that the league out to review it and possible even suspend the officials. There was no excuse for that. The refs let the game get out of control and as a result Brian Murray was tossed, Ottawa lost as a result of two power ply goals that never should have come about, and as a result it looked terrible on the refs. Murray wouldn't have been so peeved had the refs called the at least two blatant hits from behind on Senators defense men - I guess this is what passes for fore checking these days - or any of the other dozens of calls that could have been made. I know Brian Burke likes tough rugged hockey and that I would love a team that could play like Anaheim, and also as a Sens fan, I am somewhat bitter - I know call me on it if you will - but it wouldn't have matter if the Ducks were playing the Devils - my least favorite of teams - these were terrible missed calls. Anyone who has watched five minutes of a hockey game could tell you that. I officiated for four years in high school and have played hockey all my life so I know what a penalty is and two men getting paid thousands of dollars to know the difference didn't. And these weren't chincy, maybe call it maybe not type plays. These were as painfully obvious as a slap in the face, which the refs probably would also have missed. This was a travesty, and a joke and I sincerely hope that those refs are told so because there is no excuse for that. There were pathetic and lacked all common sense and good judgement. Other than that they were fine...