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Former NHL official Tim Peel says make-up calls are not a thing

By Chris Cerullo

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September 15, 2022 2:53 pm

Former NHL official Tim Peel took to Twitter on Wednesday saying that he’s “ready to talk” and willing to answer questions about what happened in his final season officiating NHL games.

One of the major highlights of the impromptu “ask me anything” session was Peel’s assertion that make-up calls are not a thing in the NHL.

In March of 2021, Peel was not so subtlety encouraged into early retirement by the league when he was caught on a live mic admitting to a bogus call during a Red Wings-Predators game.

The Predators broadcast of the matchup captured Peel discussing a minor penalty he called on forward Viktor Arvidsson with fellow official Kelly Sutherland. Peel admitted that the trip “wasn’t much” but that he “wanted to get a f***ing penalty against Nashville.”

Peel’s act of trying to make up the difference in penalty calls per team caught the attention of the league and he was unceremoniously pushed out.

“Nothing is more important than ensuring the integrity of our game,” Colin Campbell, senior executive vice president of hockey ops, said at the time. “Tim Peel’s conduct is in direct contradiction to the adherence to that cornerstone principle that we demand of our officials and that our fans, players, coaches, and all those associated with our game expect and deserve. There is no justification for his comments, no matter the context or his intention, and the National Hockey League will take any and all steps necessary to protect the integrity of our game.”

In this same Twitter interview, Peel responded to a question asking about how many other NHL refs even out penalities and said that “much worse has been said on the ice.” He also claims that he simply did not mean to say what he did.

The former ref also pretty much confirmed that reputation calls are definitely a thing.

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