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NHL officiating shows flaws in protecting players in Blackhawks vs. Flames
Photo credit: Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images
A poor officiating decision during the game between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Calgary Flames highlighted a major flaw in the NHL about player protection.
The Chicago Blackhawks hosted the Calgary Flames last night, and even if Connor Bedard scored a hat trick, the biggest storyline of the game was a controversial hit from Adam Klapka on Connor Murphy.
Klapka, who is often compared with Matt Rempe due to his size, landed a massive hit on the Blackhawks veteran, forcing Ilya Mikheyev to go after the six-foot-eight, 235-pound forward.
If you missed it, check out the hit here:
In the end, Klapka and Mikheyev both got minor penalties for roughing.
Flawed Officiating in Hawks Vs. Flames: 'Obviously it was a dirty hit' - Connor Bedard
If the NHL wants to see fewer dirty hits on the ice during games, letting Klapka, who registered a career-high 11 hits in the game, walk away with only a minor roughing penalty for his hit on Murphy isn't consistent.
The referees' decision to allow Klapka to remain in the game wasn't appreciated on the Blackhawks bench.
Here's what Connor Bedard had to say on the matter after the game:
"I was just arguing our side of what we saw. Obviously it was a dirty hit. I think he had time to kind of come back off it, and it's right at the head. You don't want to see that from anyone in the game. That's kind of what we saw. Obviously they saw something different.
Murph goes down, it's a quick hockey game and stuff happens, but we thought he could have kind of held up and not gone directly to the head. That's all what we were saying and they're going to argue their side."
Murph goes down, it's a quick hockey game and stuff happens, but we thought he could have kind of held up and not gone directly to the head. That's all what we were saying and they're going to argue their side."
Hawks fans are eager to see if the NHL's Department of Player Safety takes action against Klapka. Stay tuned for more.
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