NHL Rule Changes Give Refs More Flexibility
Posted September 25, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
If the “New NHL” is all about cracking down on interference and obstruction, than some changes to several league rules which go into effect with the start of the coming season should fit right in.
Starting this year, penalty shots can now be awarded when a player breaking away with the puck is fouled outside his blue-line rather than only from the centre line in, as was previously the case, while the interference rule has been altered to allow for a major penalty and a game misconduct when an injury results.
“The job of the referee is never easy,” said director of officiating Stephen Walkom. “It’s a difficult job, and we want to have all the necessary tools in the referee’s toolbox so the appropriate penalty can be assessed.”
Another change will see all faceoffs conducted at one of the nine dots painted on the rink in an attempt to speed up games. Previously, faceoffs after pucks left the playing surface could be performed on unmarked ice parallel to the dot nearest that spot, allowing for lengthy delays while players jockeyed for position.
Last year there were 70 penalty shots awarded and 25 goals were scored, totals that might rise this time around.
“Sometimes the simplest changes have the biggest impact,” says Walkom. “Historically, you could pull somebody down (in the neutral zone) if they were on a breakaway and all you got was a minor penalty.”
The flip side is that tweaking interference calls to add the possibility of major penalties leads some to wonder if players will act a lot more. “There are always going to be judgment calls,” says Walkom. “We go through a lot of video on what’s a minor and what’s a major.
“The real reason we put this in was that, if a player is hit really late on a play and there is a degree of force on the interference, we have another tool in the box. Why not give the referee that option? When a player hasn’t even played the puck and gets smoked, a major might be just right. My thinking is that it will lead to more correct calls.”
Mark Recchi of the Pittsburgh Penguins complains to refs about a penalty call during a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning at Pittsburgh ‘s Mellon Arena on October 15, 2005 . (Photo By Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
