Officials refuse to give the Leafs a 5-on-3 in Game 5 despite very obvious trip on Matthews
We know that 5-on-3 power plays don't occur all that often - even less so for the Toronto Maple Leafs, who went most of the year without getting one, despite a number of scenarios in which they arguably deserved one. Well, as rare as they are, they're even more rare in the postseason.
Referees often talk about not wanting to impact the outcome of the game, especially in the playoffs. That's why, when Auston Matthews was leading the attack in the Tampa zone and was tripped up on a pre-existing delayed penalty call, no arm went up, despite the play going against the letter of the rulebook.
Honestly, I get the officials not wanting to award a 5-on-3 in an elimination game, but a penalty is a penalty. There are certain infractions that you can move the goal post on, but I don't believe tripping is one of them. Especially when one of the most dangerous shooters in the league is getting tripped up in the offensive zone.
The Leafs did not score on their ensuing 5-on-4 PP, but who's to say they wouldn't have notched one if awarded a 5-on-3, which was clearly deserved? There's not wanting to impact the outcome of the game and then there's just downright ignoring an obvious call. That's basically what occurred here and there's also an argument to be made that not calling that one could end up influencing the outcome of an elimination game.
| POLL | ||
27 AVRIL | 359 ANSWERS Officials refuse to give the Leafs a 5-on-3 in Game 5 despite very obvious trip on Matthews Should the Leafs have been granted a 5-on-3 power play for this trip on Matthews? | ||
| Yes | 335 | 93.3 % |
| No | 24 | 6.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
