The NHL Rulebook is Wrong, 38 Special was Right

The NHL Rulebook is Wrong, 38 Special was Right

From Scouting The Refs Podcast #RefsPodcast by Scouting the Refs

April 18, 2026 · 19 min · Season 7 · Episode 33

About this episode

The episode discusses various officiating controversies and interpretations of the NHL rulebook during the playoffs.

This week: 23,596 penalty minutes... how do you measure a year? Liney Steve Barton hangs 'em up NHL Stanley Cup Playoff Officiating - how do they pick the officials and how does it work in the postseason? A high-sticking penalty review turns into a non-call. It's the right interpretation under the rule book... so is the rule just WRONG? Stick fouls abound at Sabres vs. Stars as Radek Faska gets penalized for causing a self-inflicted high-stick Jordan Greenway sends Ilya Lyubushkin's stick flying Another Colorado Avalanche offside controversy... and we're not sure we agree with the call on this one. --------------- Visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠scoutingtherefs.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and follow @scoutingtherefs and @toddlewissports on Twitter/X, Instagram, BlueSky, and Threads. Email us your questions - ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠heyref@scoutingtherefs.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Questions? Comments? Just looking to vent? Call the RefLine and leave us a message at 585-484-REFS! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ #RefsPodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

People in this episode

Host: Scouting the Refs

Topics covered

  • NHL officiating
  • penalty minutes
  • high-sticking penalties
  • postseason officiating
  • rule interpretation
  • offside controversy

Keywords

  • NHL
  • penalty minutes
  • high-sticking
  • officiating
  • postseason
  • rulebook
  • offside
  • Sabres
  • Stars
  • Avalanche

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NHL, Sabres, Stars, Colorado Avalanche

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