Tampa Bay Lightning: Nikita Kucherov’s ‘Questionable’ Game Winning Goal
The Tampa Bay Lightning may have defeated the Montreal Canadiens in a 2-1 Double Overtime Thriller, but all anyone wants to talk about is the “questionable” goal that sealed the deal.
The Tampa Bay Lightning and the Montreal Canadiens sure know how to put on a show to start off the Second Round of the 2014-15 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Determined to keep Lightning and Canadiens fans alike up until all hours of the night, the exciting matchup wasn’t decided until the second overtime period.
Unfortunately, despite how good the game was and what kind of heroics that Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Ben Bishop had to put up in order to secure a win in this opening battle for the Lightning, the only thing that people want to talk about is the “questionable” nature of the goal by Nikita Kucherov that sealed the deal.
Of course, by “people” we mainly mean the commentators/analysts from NBC Sports Network.
Now…before we get into our little rant about this one, let us start where all good stories start, the beginning. We find ourselves in the opening minutes of the second overtime period. Both teams are incredibly tired; especially the Lightning who are coming off of a thrilling Game 7 win over the Detroit Red Wings just two nights before.
The puck was brought into the zone and once behind the Canadiens’ net, the puck is taken away by Habs defenseman Greg Pateryn. A moment or two later, the puck was recovered by Filppula and played out towards the front of the net. Seeing that he had Nikita Kucherov open in front of the net, he fired off a pass to the Russian right wing. Just like that, the game was over and the Tampa Bay Lightning would take Game 1.
That seems legit enough, right? Well…here’s where some people have taken issue with the goal. Apparently, what the cameras, and the referees, seem to have missed is that when the puck was brought into the zone, it seems as if Valtteri Filppula was already over the blue line, which for all intents and purposes should have been called offside.
Unfortunately for the Canadiens, the referees – and much of the rest of the world – missed it. This is something that, while unpleasant and fairly disappointing, happens to just about every team in the league.
During the post-game broadcast on NBC Sports, and even when the coverage switched over to the Second Round showdown between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Minnesota Wild, all the commentators and announcers wanted to talk about was the “questionable” goal from the Tampa Bay Lightning.
There are a just a few issues we have with this one. Now, before we get into that, let us go on record by saying this. Was Valtteri Filppula offside when the puck crossed the blue line? Yes, there is no denying the video evidence. Should that have been called an offside penalty? Under the letter of the rule book, yes…it should have.
Unfortunately, the answer that has been handed to Lightning fans more than once over the course of the season applies to everyone as it does to the Lightning. If the referees and linesmen didn’t see it, it didn’t happen. In other words, what’s done is done and it’s time to move on.
Our first issue with this is that when something like this happens to the Tampa Bay Lightning, we are branded as “whiners” who “obviously know nothing of hockey,” but when it happens to a team like the Montreal Canadiens it is a national tragedy that warrants all manner of media attention.
Our question is…how is this any different than when it happens to the Lightning? The fact of the matter is that it isn’t. It is all a manner of perception by the mainstream media and the fans. Did the Lightning “get away with one” last night? As much as it pains me to say this, yes…they did.
The thing that truly disturbs us is the abundant amount of attention that is being called to this incident. As we mentioned before, following the post-game for the Lightning/Canadiens encounter, the coverage switched to the matchup between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Minnesota Wild, they still could not stop talking about the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Let’s forget about the fact that the Chicago Blackhawks were up 4-3 over the Minnesota Wild in an action-packed game, or even the fact that both teams were putting on one heck of a performance for the world to see. Rather than paying attention to the action on the ice, they continue to discuss the “questionable” Lightning goal.
We can assure you that the Tampa Bay Lightning are not the first team in the National Hockey League to benefit from a missed or questionable call, and you can bet your season ticket cards that they will not be the last.
Unfortunately, this is something that happens far more often than the NHL would like to admit.
No matter what did or did not happen in Game 1, the Tampa Bay Lightning has more important things to focus on right now. Tomorrow night, the Lightning will head back into the Bell Centre in front of the ravenous Montreal fans in order to take on the Canadiens in Game 2.
What are your thoughts on the matter? Do you think the media mania surrounding the incident is warranted or do you think that people like those at NBC Sports are allowing their personal alliances to dictate their opinions on the matter, thus making a mountain out of a mole hill? Let us know what you think in the comments below.
Next: Tampa Bay Lightning: The Night The Team Grew Up
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