The game between the Philadelphia Flyers and New Jersey Devils was controversial, and several incidents during the game left fans, coaches, and even players absolutely furious.
However, in the most talked-about happening in the game, everyone involved agreed that the referees were to blame for what happened.
In the first period, Flyers forward Garnet Hathaway was pursuing the puck on a play where the linesman eventually called icing.
Devils rookie Luke Hughes got to the puck first, and he had every right to expect a whistle from the referees. However, they delayed the icing call, and when they eventually made it, it was too late.
The delay of the call caused Hathaway to go in at full speed, and he hit Hughes hard, sending the rookie flying into the boards.
Hughes didn’t expect a hit as he was the first to the puck, just waiting for a whistle. Hathaway must’ve thought they were waiving it off, leading to a massive collision where Luke Hughes got absolutely leveled.
Hathaway received a five-minute major for boarding and a game misconduct, and the Flyers’ team was absolutely livid.
John Tortorella, known for his hot temper, lost his mind on the bench, stepping down from where he stood to get closer to the refs. Tortorella let them know what he thought about the call, but in fact, even the Devils’ players were furious.
Luke Hughes hurt his arm and left the contest; later on, Jack Hughes, Luke’s brother, was seen screaming at the refs from the bench, ‘Do your f**king job.’
Jack Hughes obviously thought that the refs’ delay in the icing call put his brother in a dangerous situation, causing him to get hurt.
Luke Hughes returned to the game in the following period, and eventually scored the game-winner.
On social media, fans were furious about the referees’ behavior during the incident.
”Refs f**ked this up by blowing a late whistle for icing, sufficiently pissing everyone off,” one said.
”That’s how you know how bad this was. Even the brother of the hurt player was more pissed at the refs than anyone on the Flyers,” another added.
”The refs injured Luke Hughes; what a joke,” a third said.”
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