Ex-NHL Referee Confesses to Favoritism Towards Star Players
For years, rumors have swirled about possible special treatment by referees towards certain players in the NHL.
Although there was no concrete evidence, on-ice observations hinted that not every player received equal treatment from officials.
In a revealing interview, ex-referee Tim Peel discussed this contentious topic.
Ex-Referee Confirms Some Players Received Special Treatments
Peel's tenure with the NHL came to an abrupt end in 2021 when a microphone captured him admitting to making a "make-up" penalty call against a team due to a previous bad call on the other team.
This revelation seemed to confirm what many fans had long suspected about the NHL's officiating methods.
Peel's statement that drew significant attention was:
"Did I give Sid Crosby some breaks over the years? Did I give Alexander Ovechkin some? Did I give the superstars some? Absolutely, because - guess what? - that's what the 18,000 fans are there to see. They're there to see him, not some fourth-line plugger."
"[For a cross-check to the head], the refs have to call it. The refs are gonna call it. I don't think Hockey Ops says, 'Well, Buffalo's not very good. We shouldn't suspend the other player because they've got a good team and Buffalo's not very good.' I disagree with that."
"[For a cross-check to the head], the refs have to call it. The refs are gonna call it. I don't think Hockey Ops says, 'Well, Buffalo's not very good. We shouldn't suspend the other player because they've got a good team and Buffalo's not very good.' I disagree with that."
Do you think every players should be treated equally?
As seen on Markerzone - Ex-NHL Referee Admits he Gave Special Treatments to Certain Players
| POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 12 | 118 ANSWERS Ex-NHL Referee Confesses to Favoritism Towards Star Players Do you think every players should be treated equally? | ||
| Yes | 103 | 87.3 % |
| No | 15 | 12.7 % |
| List of polls | ||