We watched excellent hockey in Nizhny Novgorod, until the timer in the second period with the score 1:2 in favor of Dynamo Moscow stopped at 28:03. After a high-speed pass on the right flank from Goncharuk, a precise shot into the far corner followed. The blue and white goalkeeper Konovalov reacted late. The referee scored a goal. 2:2! Just 76 seconds after Dzhioshvili overtook the guests.
But what is this? Muscovites coach Alexei Kudashov immediately, with absolute confidence in his innocence, which was clear from his entire appearance, takes an “offside” request.
Oh, he’s offside. As practice shows, with modern equipment, such challenges are met in 99 percent of cases. For example, I saw how the Kunlun video trainers work – they determine a violation when entering the attacking zone in a maximum of five seconds!
However, the judges pored over the recording of the moment for about ten minutes. Also, as I understand it, his image was delivered to all viewers. It must be recognized that there was an offside position. But so microscopic that even one step of the video playback wasn’t enough to be 100% sure that Goncharuk’s two-skate partner entered the Dynamo zone before the puck completely crossed the blue line.
Photo source: HC “Torpedo” (Nizhny Novgorod)
The goal under the current rules was correctly disallowed. But this episode changed the game. Fate unexpectedly gave Konovalov the opportunity not to become an anti-hero, which Ilya took full advantage of. From minute 29 on, the guardian of the blue and white gate became a Tretiak, or, more simply, a wall. He caught incredible courage, which was soon felt by the people of Nizhny Novgorod. In the third period, the young Torpedo players simply lowered their hands, because everyone understood that Konovalov would not miss again that night. In the final third, the hosts deigned to bother the Dynamo goalkeeper a measly six times. Even having received the majority, and having eliminated the goalkeeper towards the end, the car factories did not create anything serious.
That’s the price of a disc without counting! I can’t help but feel that Nizhny has been treated unfairly. More precisely, it is not so – dishonest in relation to hockey, the spirit and essence of it! It wouldn’t matter if it was Torpedo or Dynamo.
In my opinion, we are all too addicted to computer games. There is a consensus in the hockey community that in any controversial situation, priority should be given to attacking. After all, viewers come to see, first of all, the goals, and are not bored during endless video projections and calculations with a slide rule of millimeter spades.
Photo source: HC “Torpedo” (Nizhny Novgorod)
In fact, what advantage did Torpedo gain in the moment with the goal from the fact that his player, out of touch with events, rolled into the offensive zone a moment before the puck was there? Also, Goncharuk scored this goal a couple of seconds later, after crossing the blue line.
Well, what is the use of hockey, his spirit and motor skills from abstruse picking his nose and looking for clues in the rules that did not affect the game situation in any way? Yes, if the goal was not scored by Goncharuk, but by the player who violated the rules, he would really decide the result unfairly.
But when the shovel is cheap, and the player who made it did not influence the course of events on the ice at all, why all this completely meaningless trickery?
KHL leaders please consider this episode. If you agree with my arguments, please correct the rules. Don’t let callous machines destroy the spirit of our favorite ice game!
