Alex Burrows was at the center of some controversy on Monday night, and it had nothing to do with him using his teeth as a weapon.
The Canucks forward tried out a nifty spin-o-rama shootout move against the Los Angeles Kings. The move, which some questioned the legality of, wasn’t enough as Burrows rang the post with the shot attempt.
According to ex-NHL referee Kerry Fraser, it was a legal move. He answered a question about the play on TSN.ca, saying “the right decision was made by the referee to allow Alexandre Burrows to continue with the shootout attempt following his ‘creative’ move on Kings goalie Jonathan Quick.
“While I would have also allowed the play to continue as per the rules, I believe that an unfair advantage is being given to the shooters over the goalkeepers on plays such as this. Â As players continue to enhance their offensive skills, ‘circus type maneuvers’ have been allowed to flourish in an effort to enhance the entertainment value of penalty shots and shootouts.”
Fraser says that the since the puck never actually came to a complete stop, it’s a legal move. It’s not necessarily fair, he adds, and even offers up a suggestion to help aid goalies in these situations.
“The instant an approaching forward drops his head to execute a spin or other “skilled” move from close range I would suggest that the goalie immediately attack and initiate body contact with the player and the puck. Contact by the goalie with the puck would be deemed a save.”
The Kings ended up winning the game later in the shootout.
See Burrows’ shootout attempt below.
