Every once in a while a play comes around that forces a change in hockey’s rule book. One of the most famous was the Sean Avery rule, concerning the forward’s unique method of screen goaltender Martin Brodeur, or Los Angeles forward Jarret Stoll’s hand on the puck defensive zone faceoff rule that went into effect after the Kings’ 2012 Stanley Cup run. Detroit fans are probably still clamoring for some rule changes after this horrendous no goal call last week.
On Sunday the AHL had a play likely to lead to a rule change in the not too distant future. Bridgeport Sound Tigers goaltender David Leggio pulled an interesting little trick in a game against Springfield:
Call it bush league or call it whatever you want, but Leggio successfully ended a two-on-none shorthanded breakaway coming at him by blatantly knocking the net off its pegs, giving Falcons forward Dana Tyrell a penalty shot. Leggio proceeded to stop the attempt, making the play all that more ingenious.
Afterwards via Twitter, the 30-year-old goalie played coy about the crafty maneuver, using the opportunity to plug his goalie clinics:
We teach knocking off nets in the summer at Leggio Goaltending, along with fixing a “broke” strap and patching bad ice when your tired
— Leggio Goaltending (@LeggioGoaltend) November 3, 2014
Thanks Mr Deadspin! “@Deadspin: Brilliant goalie knocks over his own net rather than face a 2-on-0: http://t.co/Tr1fFkFQsH”
— David Leggio (@DLeggio33) November 3, 2014
So Roundtable . . . What do you think of Leggio’s decision? Was it intelligent or bush league? What is the most unusual thing you’ve seen at an AHL game?
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They should award the penalty shot AND give the goalie a game misconduct. Not to be served by some 4th liner mind you, but by the offending goaltender. I have seen plenty of goalies do this when they get in trouble when the puck is in close by nudging it with a shoulder or sliding cross ice and hitting it with a pad, but this was blatant and should be nipped in the bud.
Brian, in this case my personal opinion is that a goal should have been to Springfield, but not according to current rules. The old goalie “accidently” knocking the net off is one of the oldest tricks in the book, and sometimes can be extremely difficult to determine.
However, there is a rule in place that if a net is purposely knocked off to prevent an empty net goal, the goal is still awarded. In this type of situation where the offense is so blatant, I believe that a goal instead of a penalty shot should be awarded at the ref’s discretion. Full marks to David Leggio though for knowing his AHL rule book.
For a great explanation of the play, current referee’s options and a possible solution to this issue, I would refer you to TSN’s Kerry Fraser: http://www.tsn.ca/talent/fraser-the-options-for-a-referee-when-a-goalie-purposely-dislodges-a-net-1.124904
My not so good memory tells me that an opponents defenseman intentionally knocked the goal off the pegs during a scrum around the goal in an close Admirals game last year. In that case it was a 2 minute penalty for delay of game. There was also a case, it might have been the same game, where with the goal knocked off the pegs and the referee ruled that it would have gone in.
Actually, if you also follow the Nashville Predators (who’ve been affiliated with the Admirals since they entered the NHL), their first goal in franchise history never went into the net because it had been knocked off it’s moorings by a defending player. Can’t remember who knocked the net off, but the officials ruled Andrew Brunette’s shot would have gone in. So, this makes for some fun trivia if the question is who was the first player to put the puck in an opponents’ net for Nashville? Denny Lambert. Anyhoo…