Don’t give me the hand. The hand came a good 3 seconds before the goal, and had no effect on the play. The ref’s arm did not go up for the penalty until the puck was in the net, and essentially, the game was over. If the interference was because of Pronger’s hand wave, the penalty should have been called instantly, because the Flyers had control of the puck. But it wasn’t. The ref waited until the puck was in the net to make the horrid call, about 5 seconds late. This is a brutal call. One of the worst calls I have seen in awhile, and its tough to lose a game that way.
On the positive side, James van Riemsdyk scored his third goal in three games, and is finally starting to get things going here for the Flyers, giving them even more depth on offense. The organization and fan base has high expectations for JVR, the former #2 overall draft pick. Personally, I think the kid has a lot of promise. He has good size and can skate very well. He can cause havoc in the open ice, but has a tendency to make a careless error or two throughout the course of a game. As he continues to grow on the ice, his productivity will continue to increase.
The Flyers continue to play great hockey, and are now 15-6-3 through 24 games, for an NHL leading 33 points. They are 12-2-2 in the since October 26th. After the controversial loss to Calgary today, the Flyers have an unneeded chip they can carry on their shoulder heading into tomorrow afternoon against the Devils. Bad news for Jersey.
-AirPort
