Knights on Ice — C’est Ce Que C’est

When you believe “it is what it is” in Montreal or any French-speaking country, you’ll hear “C’est ce que c’est.”

As a fan, there was nothing you could have done about the events that transpired at T-Mobile in the overtime loss the VGK suffered to the Montreal Canadiens by a score of 4-3. Unfortunately, a few people other than the 38 skaters who played the game did have a say in what actually happened.

Yes, the 19 Canadiens skaters on the ice yesterday put in a complete 60-minute effort. They out-skated, out-hustled, and out-shot the Knights and were determined to leave Las Vegas with a victory as they embarked on their Christmas break of five days.

But even with all of that, Montreal still needed a few helping hands to achieve their win.

For one, the on-ice officials missed a high-stick call on the second goal scored by Phillip Danault. Phillip stands six-one. Add three inches for his skates and he’s at six-four. An NHL net is four feet high and six feet wide. So when Danault tips a shot with the blade of his stick around his shoulders, it should be clear to the on-ice officials that the portion of his stick that made contact with the puck was above the crossbar, which would automatically disqualify this goal.

The game is fast and not everything is seen on the ice as it happens. But with the help of video replay, the War Room in Toronto can and will correct a missed call — most of the time. Yesterday fell into one of the other times.

The goal was immediately reviewed; all goals are. When Toronto saw the goal as it occurred, it was reviewed as a goal. But they also observed where the blade of his stick was when it made contact with the puck.

To the 18,173 were watching the replay on Knight Tron, it was clear the blade of his stick was shoulder high, which even if you were to subtract 12 inches from the top of his head to his shoulders, that leaves the blade of his stick at five feet four inches, clearly 16 inches above the crossbar.

Since Danault was not directly in front of the net, the NHL camera view couldn’t see him and the crossbar at the same time. Common sense would seem like that exact view wouldn’t be needed, as it would be clear that based on his height and where his stick makes contact with the puck, it’s clearly higher than the top of the net. But since the call on the ice was a goal, there was no conclusive evidence to overturn the original call. So there was some more help from non-players. What can you say other than c’est ce que c’est?

Danault eventually wound up with a hat trick, when his third goal tied the game at 3-3 with just 1:25 left and Carey Price on the bench for an additional skater. In his previous 36 games, Danault had scored only two goals.

It’s rare for me to point to officiating as a cause for a win or a defeat. But in this game, it raised its ugly head at least three times. The first two were the no-call from the on-ice officials on Danault and the “inconclusive” from the War Room.

“When I look at it, it looks like it’s a high-stick, but I understand it’s a tough call and inconclusive,” Coach Gallant said after the game. “That’s the way it goes and you move forward, but I disagree with the call.”

The NHL started using a video goal judge in the 1992-1993 season, the second major professional sport to endorse the use of video replays. The league back then used a video judge in each arena to help the referee on goal calls.

“This is not going to eliminate all controversies with respect to goals,” former league President John Ziegler said at the time. “We can at least … provide assistance to those people who, under great pressure and at very difficult times, have to make these difficult decisions.”

In the first years of implementing the video review, it was used in determining if the puck crossed the goal line; if it was kicked or thrown into the net or went off an official; or if it crossed the goal line before the net was dislodged or before the end of a period occurred.

In 2003, the NHL created the “situation room” in Toronto’s Air Canada Centre to give league officials a singular location to monitor every game and review all contestable plays. Also dubbed the “war room,” it was also given an additional undertaking recently: the coach’s challenge.

The move to one location took the call out of the hands of one individual and put it in the hands of a few. Sounds like a good idea and most of the time it is, unless we’re discussing goaltender interference; those seem to differ night after night, but that’s a story for another day.

The non-reversal of Montreal’s second goal was frustrating, but the VGK’s 18 skaters were out-worked by the better team in the game and Coach Gallant made that clear in his post-game comments.

“Montreal came in here and played a gritty game. They played a competitive game and they were fast. It was probably the best team I’ve seen this year that came into our building and played like that. They played great, quick and fast.”

I intentionally said 18 skaters for Vegas. I didn’t include Fleury, who once again was amazing and kept this game close. He faced a season-high 47 shots and recorded a season-high 43 saves. He was clearly upset after the winning goal was scored in OT as he smashed he stick against the boards before leaving the ice. His demeanor in the locker room was somewhat tempered, but you can see his disappointment in the post-game video link at the bottom of this post.

Brandon Pirri scored two of the Knights’ three goals. Jonathan Marchessault had Vegas’ third goal, his 13^th of the year and his first in the last six games. Both William Karlsson and Brayden McNabb had two assists.

The last helping hand for Montreal came with the Golden Knight pushing to score a goal with just two seconds left. A shot from the point hit a skate and was headed to Paul Stastny in front of the net. Just as Stastny was about to grab the loose puck, he was cross-checked from behind by defenseman Jordie Benn, a clear penalty along with a missed scoring opportunity. That’s an automatic call at any other time of the game. I guess the on-ice officials were done with influencing the result of the game. But their non-call did 1:59 into the OT period; Montreal scored the winning goal when they should have been shorthanded.

Granted, Montreal was the better team and got the win they deserved, but they also got more than a helping hand in the win. Ironically, Montreal came into the game 0-5 in their previous overtimes this season.

It was the first time the Knights have lost when entering the third period with a lead and it snapped a six-game winning streak at T-Mobile.

The point lost was magnified by the results of the other top five teams in the Pacific Division. Anaheim, Calgary, and Edmonton lost in regulation and San Jose and Vancouver lost in OT. The only teams that won in the Pacific were the bottom two: Arizona and the Kings.

Yesterday’s loss also wasted Pirri’s two-goal performance. Pirri has three goals in his two games since being called up from the Chicago Wolves and a total of six goals in just four games played as a Golden Knight. He’s making a strong statement about remaining with the team once Pacioretty returns to the lineup.

The knock on Brandon Pirri is his liability on defense. From my observations, I believe what he offers on the scoring sheet is impressive and the past scouting reports on him may actually be unfair. I’m not an NHL GM, coach, or scout, but I say he’s made a strong case to stay with the big team. The third line could use some scoring. Between Nosek’s three goals in 34 games and Carpenter’s one, Pirri’s three goals in two games seems like a no-brainer to me.

Sometimes it’s hard to shake other people’s opinions about yourself and Pirri is trying his best to make these hockey experts see him in a different light.

My 3 Stars of the Game: Phillip Danault (3 goals), Brandon Pirri (2 goals), Marc-André Fleury (43 saves on 47 shots; without Fleury, Montreal wins this game 7-3)

The next game is today against the L.A. Kings at 5 p.m.

The VGK get a much-needed three days off until their next game on Thursday Dec. 27. Montreal is getting a five-day break and has played 37 games so far. The Knights have played 38 games and only get a three-day break.

The schedule maker hasn’t be kind to Vegas, who have played 22 road games so far this season, the most in the entire NHL.

Your comments and opinions are welcome here at Las Vegas Advisor or you can contact me directly at [email protected] or you can visit my Facebook page Vegas Hockey Guy

For the most comprehensive coverage of the Vegas Golden Knights’ historic inaugural season, take a look at our book Vegas Golden Knights—How a First-Year Expansion Team Healed Las Vegas and Shocked the Hockey World

And here are my videos from the post-game:

Marc-Andre

Brandon Pirri

Jonathan Marchessault

Coach Gallant

Brayden McNabb