Has anyone ever heard the saying, “Let the players play?” Apparently Dan Murphy and his crew who officiated the Rensselaer men’s hockey team’s 4-2 win over rival Clarkson in the Big Red Freakout have not.
Murphy and his crew were horrendous. The ECAC has never been know for having the best and brightest referees, but one would think they would at least be knowledgeable of the rules, especially in a game as electrifying as Freakout.
Coaches love to say that officials do not decide games. However, such a comment would be hard to swallow after the excessive amount of penalties Murphy levied, the questionable nature of those calls, and several other dreadful stoppages in play Murphy and his crew made on Saturday night.
Twenty-four! That’s right, 24 penalties were assessed at Freakout, but at least Murphy did a good job of balancing his ridiculously poor calls between Clarkson and Rensselaer, as each team received an equal 12 penalties. Although the number of penalties called were even, the fact that there where so many whistles blown destroyed the flow of the game and never allow either team to develop a rhythm.
However, it was not the amount of calls in this highly physical and emotional contest that was principal issue; it was the types of calls of that were made.
Rensselaer received two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties for diving on plays that looked like there was an awful lot of contact. Kevin Croxton received a very touchy tripping penalty with just over five minutes left in the game. It appeared that Murphy was determined to leave his mark on this crucial and exciting game.
It was not simply the penalties Murphy called that were outrageously terrible, but on several RPI scoring chances, Murphy stopped play on delayed penalty calls before Clarkson had touched the puck. The worst of these whistles came in the third period on a Scott Romfo slap-shot which beat Clarkson goalie Dustin Traylen. The goal would have tied the game, but thanks to Murphy’s incompetence Clarkson was able to maintain the lead for a few more moments.
In all fairness to the Golden Knights, the officials hurt them on several calls as well. The linesman called an icing infraction on Clarkson during a Rensselaer power play, stopping the clock and the flow of the penalty kill. Clarkson Head Coach George Roll was so upset after the game that he engaged in a heated argument with Murphy. The two men eventually had to be separated by the linesmen, but remained visibly angry.
The “Murphy sucks” chant quickly became the most popular cheer of the night for the capacity crowd at Houston Field House after so many questionable calls.
All in all, Freakout was one of the worst officiated games seen by this writer in recent memory. The atrocious calls almost cost Rensselaer the game, and if you ask Clarkson fans, they probably did cost Clarkson the game. It is time for the ECAC to reevaluate the leagues’ referees, and either retrain them or hire new ones before these inept individuals truly destroy a game or the league as a whole.
