Whether you’re a Boston Bruins fan or a St. Louis Blues fan, you have to admit: The officiating in the Stanley Cup Final has been an unmitigated disaster.
The non-call on Tyler Bozak’s trip of Noel Acciari in Thursday night’s Game 5 obviously tops the list. But since the series started, the zebras have missed calls, been baited by embellishments and, at times, swallowed their whistles just because.
Twitter user Matt St. Jean on Friday shared a series of clips that highlight the inconsistent officiating in the Cup Final. The results are both frustrating and embarrassing.
(You can click here to view the thread.)
Of course, there are plenty more highlights that could’ve been included in that thread, and not just from Game 5.
Now, there’s no denying St. Jean had some bias when selecting clips. Because whether Bruins fans want to admit it or not, their team has been guilty of embellishing during the series, and the calls undeniably went in Boston’s favor during the first three games. (We can think of a David Backes sell job in Game 1 and a Brandon Carlo dive in Game 3, just to name a couple.)
Obviously, things have gone the other direction in the two games since, though the reasons why remain subject for debate.
But that’s the problem. Calls shouldn’t be baited, missed or favor one team over another. That stuff happens during the regular season because humans are humans, but it shouldn’t happen in the Stanley Cup Final, at least not to the level that it has.
The sad truth is that the refs have been the story of the Stanley Cup Final, and that sucks for everyone.
