Not only was it a weak push by Girardi that resulted in the penalty shot, but was I the only one who thought that was quite the pratfall that Malkin took?!?
No you're not, and I was implying that with "tame push". But that's besides the point. Hughson and Simpson didn't even flinch at the penalty call, like it was a given. I can only surmise, from their reaction, that there's something we don't know about breakaways; some rule where you can't gently push a man when you don't have your stick. Maybe that's it; if you don't have a stick you have to back off from a breakaway? This is really pissing me off!
I hate this! If the official called a penalty shot over a gentle push, this is a new all-time low in hockey officiating and I'm beside myself in disbelief. WTF, they're taking all the physicality out of the game, what is this, the phoquing ballet?! Well, Malkin's dive sure was!
What makes this doubly infuriating is the fact that a referee doesn't SAY what the penalty IS for an awarded penalty shot. He ONLY signals for it to happen. To me, Girardi made a brilliant defensive play, skating hard, catching up and pushing Malkin offstride.
Seems totally legal and fantastically effective, to me. I want to know why that was a penalty, I want the answer to that, fer crissakes!!!
-pulp "and now you still don't know, the rest of the story" 42
