Home / News / After blindside hit on Marcus Pettersson, TJ Oshie benefits from NHL’s review rule for major penalties

After blindside hit on Marcus Pettersson, TJ Oshie benefits from NHL’s review rule for major penalties

By Ian Oland

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January 19, 2021 9:17 pm

During the second period, TJ Oshie leveled Marcus Pettersson with a high hit at neutral ice, knocking the Penguins defenseman out of the game. Oshie, looking for retribution after being hit seconds prior, appeared to nail Pettersson in the head.

Oshie was initially issued a major penalty while Pettersson laid on the ice being tended to by the trainer. Oshie appeared likely to be kicked out of the game.

Then officials reviewed the play for several minutes – setting in motion an obscure procedural rule that was added to the rulebook by the NHL before the 2019-20 season.

Video

Here’s another look.

As officials studied the replays, they saw that despite Oshie’s hit being a lot of bad things (late, dangerous, and blindside), the Capitals forward hit Pettersson in the left shoulder and not the head. Pettersson’s injury occurred due to the whiplash.

Therefore, officials downgraded the major penalty down to a minor for interference.

The review rule was officially added in September and reads as such:

Rule 20.6: Referees shall review all plays that result in the assessment of any Major Penalty (other than a Major Penalty for Fighting) for the purpose of confirming (or modifying) their original call on the ice. […] The Referee shall only have the following options following video review of his own call: (i) confirming his original Major Penalty call; or (ii) reducing his original Major Penalty call to a lesser penalty for the same infraction.

Rule 21.5: Referees shall review all plays that result in the assessment of any Match Penalty for the purpose of confirming (or modifying) their original call on the ice. […] The Referee shall have the following options following such review: (i) confirming his original Match Penalty call; or (ii) reducing his original Match Penalty call to a lesser penalty for the same infraction.

…

Such reviews will be conducted exclusively by the Referee(s) on the ice in consultation with other On-Ice Official(s), as appropriate, using the technology (for example, a handheld tablet or a television or computer monitor) specified in and provided pursuant to Rule 38.5.

Communication between the Situation Room and the On-Ice Officials shall be limited to contact between the appropriate Game Logger in the Situation Room and the Referee to ensure the Referee is receiving any and all video they might request, as well as the appropriate replay angles they may need to review the penalty call. There shall be no other contact or consultation between the On-Ice Official(s) and the NHL Situation Room, or with any other non-game participant.

Evgeni Malkin scored on the resulting power play to tie the game up 4-4, but the Capitals were fortunate to not lose one of their best forwards for the remainder of the game.

RMNB Coverage of Caps at Penguins

Screenshot courtesy of NBC Sports Washington 

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