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HOCKEY.ONTHEWEB MENU
This website is protected by copyright. Any use of the materials contained herein without the consent of Hockey.Ontheweb is strictly prohibited. |
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http://www.hockey-ontheweb.com
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PLAYOFF WRAP-UP Originally posted June 22, 1999: Volume 1, Issue 19
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Hockey.Ontheweb's Final Record: 12 - 3 Finals
Dallas v. Buffalo A well-worn expression in legal circles explains that possession is nine-tenths of the law. And so it is in the NHL. Brett Hull was in possession of the puck. Therefore, the Stars win the Stanley Cup. A similar call on a similar play in Phoenix in February also saw Greg Adams awarded a goal. A directive issued by the NHL in March explained that one of the exceptions to the "in-the-crease" rule occurred when the player in violation of the rule was the player in possession of the puck.
After all that, people have almost forgotten that Dallas was full credit for its Stanley Cup championship. It was richly deserved for Bob Gainey, Ken Hitchcock and the cast of veterans that made up the former Minnesota North Stars. This team learned from its previous playoff losses. Ed Belfour played the best hockey of his career, and Joe Nieuwendyk demonstrated that he still has some gas left in the tank. As predicted by Hockey.Ontheweb on September 22, 1998, the Dallas Stars are the champions in 1998-99. Let us not let the controversial goal ruin the outcome. NOTES -- Hockey.Ontheweb will not publish its feature articles as often during the summer. But the site will be updated with news, links, gifs, and wavs on a frequent basis. So keep visiting! Thanks to all for helping make this season a success.
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So, it seems, the referee's call was the correct one. Nevertheless, it was an embarrassing end to the Stanley Cup, fully deserved by the powers who kept the crease rule in the face of substantial opposition. It is noteworthy that less than 48 hours after that play, the league voted to eliminate video reviews of the crease violation and to leave the matter to the discretion of the referee. The league also indicated that it would permit encroachment of the crease area where there was no interference with the goaltender. League officials claimed the change was not related to the Hull goal; it had been on the "agenda". But the swiftness with which the league dispensed with the rule was surely motivated by the final play of the 1998-99 season.