Mitch Marner Sounds Off On the Controversial No-Goal Against the Ducks
Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images
Maple Leafs superstar Mitch Marner was not impressed with the officials on Sunday night after a goal had been taken away from the team after a brutal ruling.
While the Leafs came away with a 302 victory over the Anaheim Ducks, it wasn't necessarily the smoothest game. Not only did the team have to contend with a feisty and young Ducks squad, but could have had some serious issues thanks to an errant skate blade and Auston Matthews.
But I wasn't just that close call that got the Maple Leafs up in arms. At one point, Toronto seemed to have gotten a goal from Matthew Knies, after teammate Mitch Marner kept the puck in with a backhand swing at the blue line.
Mitch Marner: Height Check Needed
However, after review, the referees determined it was a high-stick from Marner and that the play should have been whistled dead, therefore the goal was overturned. It was another display of questionable officiating against Toronto, and their star forward explained how it happened:
I asked the refs after. It's because of my height that it got called off. But I've had some tough bounces with stuff getting called off right now, so hopefully it changes.
Whether it being due to Marner being shorter than his listed height, or he has some very stretchy arms, but the refs thought his height was the determining factor. At first glance it looks like the stick is parallel to Marner's shoulders, which isn't a high-stick.
However, not everyone is on Marner's side, as some fans are understandably upset and have interpreted the forward as caring more about counting stats; though it can easily be seen as those tough bounces actually benefit the whole of the team and not just him.
At this point in the season, teams are trying to gain every little advantage they can and if they can get away with a slightly higher stick without officials noticing? You bet they'll do that.
The only issue is when does it become an issue? More specifically, when does Toronto also start to get seeing the same breaks being offered to their opponents?
History has shown that very rarely do the Maple Leafs reap the benefits more than the opposition, and if they can't get a break during the playoffs then it's going to be an even tougher road.
But there's one thing that we can learn from this entire situation, and they echo a Canadian icon:
Keep your stick on the ice.
| POLL | ||
MARS 31 | 590 ANSWERS Mitch Marner Sounds Off On the Controversial No-Goal Against the Ducks Do you think the Maple Leafs are going to have an advantage or disadvantage with video review in the playoffs? | ||
| Advantage | 393 | 66.6 % |
| Disadvantage | 197 | 33.4 % |
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