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Most sports fans would agree the widespread adoption of instant replay has been a very welcome development thanks to its ability to minimize the impact human error can have on the result of a game. With that said, the NHL is once again being urged to revisit a particular type of review thanks to an offside call that cost the Blackhawks on Tuesday night.
Prior to the start of the 2015-16 season, the NHL announced it would allow teams to challenge a goal if they felt a player on the forecheck crossed the blue line before the puck entered the offensive zone.
It was a solid idea in theory and one that has been fairly beneficial in practice. However, it’s also been a constant source of frustration among hockey fans who think the league is intent on following the letter of the current law to a fault.
That belief is perfectly highlighted by what unfolded when the Bruins and the Blackhawks faced off on Tuesday night. Chicago was on the power play when Boston’s Charlie Coyle committed a brutal turnover that presented Connor Bedard with a golden opportunity in the slot, and the rookie phenom took full advantage with a one-timer that beat Jeremy Swayman to give the home team a 1-0 lead.
They took this beautiful goal away from Connor Bedard, due to an offsides that happened like 30 seconds prior and was super close… unreal 🤡😂 @NHL really needs to enforce a time span in which you can challenge offsides. What a joke. #Blackhawks #NHL pic.twitter.com/YsGpfIHCHF
— ✶ ✶Tony G✶ ✶ (@Certified_TonyG) October 25, 2023
However, things took a turn when the Bruins used a coach’s challenge after their video team alerted the bench to a potential offside. The call was about as close as they come, but Bedard’s tally was taken off the board after the officials determined Andreas Athanasiou had entered the zone a few milliseconds before the puck arrived.
It was technically the correct decision, and while I’m a Bruins fan who’s been victimized by similar rulings in the past, I still sympathized with the many Blackhawks supporters online who took issue with the fact that the offside had occurred around 30 seconds before the goal was scored and essentially had no impact on the play that led to it.
This is far from the first time this has happened, and it’s increasingly hard to argue the NHL doesn’t need to address this. It’s one thing if a team is offside on an odd-man rush or a breakaway, but when the offense and the defense both get a chance to regroup, it seems foolish to negate a goal based on the initial entry.
So what’s the best fix? One possible solution is negating the offside if every skater on the ice makes their way back to the zone, although there are certain cases where that could come down to a dreaded judgment call.
The most obvious fix is probably to institute some sort of time limit; if a goal is scored 10 or 15 seconds after the initial infraction, it’s hard to imagine the offside really had an impact.
I’m not holding my breath, but here’s to hoping the NHL will take a closer look at the policy in the offseason.