NHL officials are required to be a part of the action, and sometimes it entails them being on the other end of an unfortunate occurrence.
Refs can slip and fall, absorb contact while attempting to break up a physical altercation among players, or get hit by a puck, which is what happened to an official during Tuesday’s Panthers-Blues game.
The ref was in the wrong place at the wrong time in the first period, when Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo attempted to dump the puck into the corner. Standing in that area of the ice was the official, however, who got drilled in the groin by the puck. To make matters worse, the puck somehow deflected off the ref into the goal.
That might've been an #stlblues goal… but you can't score off the referee.
The Blues and Panthers are playing on FSMW and the FOX Sports app right now: https://t.co/y5It4YDxm3 pic.twitter.com/v5hwMi3SBn— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) December 12, 2018
It all worked out in the end, though, as the ref appeared to be OK, and the goal was disallowed.
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