Blues-Sharks Game Ends In Controversy With Clear Hand Pass Missed By Refs

Another night, another potentially devastating blown call in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The latest victims were the St. Louis Blues, who got absolutely screwed Wednesday night in their Western Conference Final Game 3 loss to the San Jose Sharks.

San Jose won the game and took a 2-1 series lead when Erik Karlsson scored the winning goal 5 minutes and 23 seconds into the overtime period. Moments after Karlsson’s shot hit the back of the net, Blues goalie Jordan Binnington shot back to his feet to protest the play.

Binnington’s contention? That the Sharks got away with an illegal hand pass. Replay clearly confirmed this as Timo Meier played the puck with his hand which was then played by Gustav Nyquist who set up Karlsson for the game-winner.

Unfortunately for the Blues, that play can’t be reviewed. So if the officials didn’t see it, it didn’t happen. How all four on-ice officials miss that, however, is a different story.

NHL series supervisor spoke Kay Whitmore spoke to The Athletic (serving as the pool reporter) and provided little that might console Blues fans.

“It’s a non-reviewable play,” he said when asked about it.

When asked whether any officials saw the play: “It’s a non-reviewable play. You can read between the lines. You can figure out what you want. You watched the video. But it’s non-reviewable. I know that sounds like a cop-out answer, but that’s the truth.”

So, we’re gonna go with “no” on whether the officials saw it.

Blues general manager Doug Armstrong, according to The Athletic, slammed his hand on the door of the officials’ room and yelled “(Expletive) garbage!” if you’re wondering how the Blues handled things.

While the Blues obviously are justified for feeling the way they do, we probably should also mention they blew a late lead that put them in this position. Logan Couture’s goal with 54.6 seconds left in regulation set the stage for overtime and the ensuing drama.