NHL star Cale Makar convinced a referee to overturn a penalty decision against the New York Islanders in the Colorado Avalanche tight win on Monday night.
Late in the first period against the Islanders, Makar was skating around the Colorado net when he fell to the ice. It certainly appeared as though he was tripped, with the referee instantly raising his arm to call a tripping penalty against Matthew Barzal, who was defending Makar.
However, the Avalanche defenseman shook his head and immediately began protesting the decision. He insisted he had fallen on his own and did not want the penalty called, despite the immense advantage it would have handed his team.
The referee subsequently agreed and announced there would be no penalty on the play, a call met with a chorus of boos from the partisan crowd. After the game, Makar explained why he decided to appeal the decision.
“The ref who called it wasn’t the guy at center ice,” Makar said after Colorado’s 1-0 shootout win. “He was kind of behind the net on the far side. I don’t think he had a good angle on it. He just saw me fall.
“I would like to think most times I fall it’s usually because somebody trips me. That one I just lost an edge. I felt pretty guilty for the boys there.”
Makar admitted he would have felt guilty either way, considering he either benefitted from a poor call or let his Avalanche teammates down. He added: “I felt a lot more guilty about doing that than probably if I would’ve said nothing. I don’t know if it’s something I’ll do again.”
Barzal, who had the penalty called on him before the decision was reversed, said: “Obviously, good sportsmanship on his part. I don’t know if I would have done the same, to be honest with you.”
Ultimately, the good sportsmanship from Makar didn’t cost the Avalanche, as they dominated the Islanders in shots (46-26) as well as high-danger scoring chances (18-10). Islanders goalkeeper Ilya Sorokin starred, ensuring the score remained 0-0 through overtime.
Makar had an opportunity to win the game at the end of overtime when he nearly scored after a pass from Mikko Rantanen. However, Sorokin matched his effort. Colorado’s goalie Alexandar Georgiev found his groove in the shootout, stopping all three shots he faced before Evan Rodrigues beat Sorokin to win the game for the Avalanche.
After the match, even Islanders captain Anders Lee was in awe of Makar and his honesty. The 32-year-old said: ““It’s nice to see some integrity going on. Sometimes you’ve got to take the power play, you know? But, hey, at the end of the day, they want to get the call right, and I think that’s the most important thing. It’s a fast game, and it’s tough for the ref. Honourable thing for him to do.”
