Boston Bruins star David Pastrnak had choice words about the officiating in Sunday’s 6-5 shootout loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The veteran winger was particularly frustrated about the slashing penalty early into overtime just before he scored what would’ve been the winning goal.
“I have no clue what happened, honestly,” he told reporters after the game. “It’s a freaking turnover. We got a 2-on-1. A referee has an arm up and is letting it go. Sway is going to the bench. We finish the play, score a goal, and all of a sudden, I’m in the penalty box. So, [it’s a] joke.
“I don’t understand. I’ve never seen something like that. So, to me, it was [a] joke. I don’t care if that’s a bad answer, but that’s how I feel. It’s weird. Score a goal and end up in the penalty box, but whatever. We gave them two points, and that’s what matters, and that’s tough on us.”
The referee’s whistle certainly seemed to come pretty late. After the Lightning lose possession, Marat Khusnutdinov brings the puck up the ice and finds Pastrnak. It’s only once Pastrnak scores that the refs indicate there was a penalty during the sequence.
“We were all a little bit confused because he called the penalty and we had the puck and he didn’t blow the whistle,” Bruins coach Marco Sturm said. “Pasta went down and scored that goal and the whistle went. I don’t know why they didn’t blow the whistle right away.”
While not the most egregious case of slashing, Pastrnak was guilty by the letter of the law. He and his team don’t have much of a case against the call itself. Their frustration over the continuation is more understandable.
That general annoyance was also probably influenced by the fact Boston committed 11 total penalties and allowed Tampa Bay to have eight power-play chances, three of which resulted in Lightning goals in the second period.