Bruins baffled by NHL decision not to overturn Panthers goal for interference: ‘I couldn’t play my position’

BOSTON — The way Charlie Coyle remembered the sequence, he was trying to play in a rebound from Anton Lundell that bounced off Jeremy Swayman’s left pad. The next moment he felt a stick on his back.

Bad guy Sam Bennett’s staff, of course.

“I’m trying to make a play,” Coyle said after the Boston Bruins’ 3-2 Game 4 loss to Bennett and the Florida Panthers. “It goes through me. I feel a push from behind. I’m going down on Sway. The puck goes past their guy. Empty net. I figured I could probably turn around and play on it or erase it. That’s what happened.

“It’s a difficult decision. Sometimes you have to play with things. I can’t make excuses.

Coyle is 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighs 218 pounds. It’s a charge that fell on Swayman. Naturally, it wasn’t easy for the goalie to push away Coyle’s mass and move to his right to stop the puck.

“I don’t know exactly what happened,” Swayman said. “I just know I couldn’t play my position. And the examination showed it.

Video coordinators Mat Myers and Dan Darrow are responsible for starting reviews of the Bruins. On their advice, coach Jim Montgomery told referees Frederick L’Ecuyer and Francis Charron that he would challenge the tying goal for obstructing the goalkeeper. From the Bruins’ perspective, Coyle and Swayman were denied the opportunity to play the puck due to Bennett’s cross-check.

Montgomery and the Bruins coaching staff dispute goaltender interference – their first of the postszn.

The goal stands, the coaches are now 1-3 in interference issues in the 2024 playoffs. pic.twitter.com/CERUe3WvEk

– Shayna (@hayyyshayyy) May 13, 2024

“We thought Coyle was above our goalie,” Montgomery said. “And if Coyle could have held on, he could have cleared the puck. This prevented our goaltender from reacting while playing the puck.

Under Rule 69.1, if a defensive player has been pushed, shoved or fouled by an attacking player in such a way as to cause the defending player to make contact with his own goalkeeper, such contact will be considered contact initiated by the attacking player. If necessary, a penalty is imposed on the attacking player. If a goal is scored, it will be disallowed.

L’Ecuyer and Charron put on their headphones and watched the goal on their screen. The challenge has been canceled. Bennett’s tying goal was good. According to Montgomery, Toronto’s situation room made the decision, not the referees on the ice.

“Toronto thought it was a good goal,” Montgomery said. “That the play did not interfere with the goal. This is the explanation I got.

According to the NHL, the video review confirmed the original on-ice announcement of a good goal. Coyle’s push on Bennett, according to the league, and subsequent contact on Swayman did not prevent the goalie from playing his position in the crease before Central Florida’s goal.

From Coyle’s recollection, he picked up a good chunk of Swayman on the way down. Bennett hit him so hard.

“I completely fall if I don’t hit Swayman,” Coyle said of the force of Bennett’s countercheck. “There’s no way he can do that.” I hit him. If I don’t hit him, I fall.

I have no idea how that Sam Bennett push didn’t result in goaltender interference. Excerpt from rule 69: pic.twitter.com/epT6YmC1Ko

– Referee Scouting (@ScoutingTheRefs) May 13, 2024

With Coyle either on top of his right pad or blocking his progress, Swayman thought there was no way he could stretch to stop Bennett’s shot. When Montgomery made the challenge, Swayman was sure the goal would come back.

“I know our guys aren’t going to contest a goal unless they know it’s going to be (overturned),” Swayman said. “I was really confident in that.”

The Bruins led 2-0 after the first period. Swayman finished off Lundell’s one-timer in the second period.

But the Bruins were still in control of the game when Hampus Lindholm came out for interference. Swayman kept his crease clear. The Bruins had more offensive life than in the first period despite their two-goal lead at the start of the game.

But the unsuccessful challenge was a kick to the head that the Bruins couldn’t overcome. Due to the challenge, the Bruins had to kill another penalty. They failed to create any offensive momentum. Bennett’s goal gave the Panthers oxygen and stole it from the Bruins.

All of this allowed Aleksander Barkov to score the game-winner after dancing over David Pastrnak and Jake DeBrusk.

Now, Swayman and the Bruins have turned things around. After trailing 3-1 in the first round against the Toronto Maple Leafs, the ace must steal three wins for the Bruins to return to the second round.

“It’s playoff hockey, and we better believe it because it’s reality,” Swayman said of falling behind 3-1. “And the reality is we’re going to go to Florida. We’re going to play the same game. And we’re going to succeed. I have no doubts in this group. We have a lot of confidence and a lot of motivation to bring this back to Boston. Because our fans deserve much better and we’re happy to do it.

(Photo: Steve Babineau/NHLI via Getty Images)