Stars Defeat Blues In Penalty-Crazy Game

I attended a wild and crazy game Saturday night when the St. Louis Blues took on the Dallas Stars, that’s for sure. Dallas won the game 4-1, but that doesn’t even begin to tell the whole story. This game was physical and had a lot of fights, hits, scrums – and cheap shots too. I’m not usually one to complain about the refs a lot, but they were absolutely terrible and make a lot of blatant mistakes. So without further adieu, I have lots to discuss!

• The game got off to an exciting start when D.J. King TKO’d Krys Barch in an early first-period fight. King did great, but unfortunately he broke his hand. Look in the post below this one for more details on that. Barch went to the lockerroom with a bloody nose and also looking dizzy, but he later returned.
• But the fighting didn’t stop there. Later in the first period, big, rugged Brad Winchester put a big hit on a Dallas Star along the blueline, and Krys Barch wanted a piece of him. He followed Winchester around the ice as he challenged him, and all of the sudden Brian Sutherby came up to Winchester and the gloves came off. Sutherby is another gritty guy, and him and Winchester fought a draw in this scrap: Sutherby vs. Winchester – 10/24/09
• The first period ended without any goals scored…
• Then, in the middle of the second period after Dallas jumped ahead to a 1-0 lead, things got even more chippy. Steve Ott went low and hipchecked Carlo Colaiacovo at the blueline — completely flipping him over. Colaiacovo landed hard on the ice and looked to be in pain. After the game he didn’t feel good, and was out of the lineup for Wednesday’s game against Carolina, so hopefully he is okay. After Colaiacovo got hit, Alex Pietrangelo came to his aid, except Ott grabbed Pietrangelo and put him in a headlock. More players piled in – Daley, Fistric and Brunnstrom for the Stars, and Tkachuk, Backes and Boyes for the Blues – as there was a big scrum along the boards. Ott got a roughing penalty, and the absurd thing is that Pietrangelo got a double-minor for roughimg, and he barely did anything! It was a completely ridiculous call. Tkachuk and Fistric also received minors for unsportsmanlike conduct, and I also disagree with that. The Stars got a powerplay out of this mess, which is very very stupid. Ott should have been the only one to get a penalty. The refs made some big mistakes here, in my opinion.
• Just a couple minutes after that, the Stars scored on the (B.S.) powerplay, and B.J. Crombeen lined up next to Ott on the next faceoff at center ice. Crombeen gave Ott’s stick a little slash, and the refs sent Crombeen to the box! Absolutely ridiculous. Players jostle around like that all the time. It was hardly worthy of a penalty. It’s not like Crombeen slashed Ott himself.
• The Stars quickly got up to a 4-0 lead, and in the 3rd period, the Blues decided that they just wanted to let loose. Andy Murray sent Cam Janssen out on the ice and he made his presence be felt. He put two bone-crushing hits on former Blue, Jeff Woywitka, but for some reason Janssen then received a 10-minute game misconduct, which I don’t understand at all. Really, what did he do that deserved getting kicked out for the rest of the game? This was yet another ridiculous call by the refs. Janssen was just throwing CLEAN hits (something Ott doesn’t do) and yet Janssen gets kicked out and Ott doesn’t. There is no explanation for that!
• As the game winded down with only a couple minutes left, Steve Ott yet again showed why he is a major chump. As Crombeen took the puck along the boards, Ott came up, stuck his leg out, and put a knee-on-knee hit in Crombeen. Crombeen was pissed, so he got up, dropped his mitts right away, and grabbed Ott. He didn’t even give him a chance as he started firing punches to the back of his head. Major props to Crombeen here. He plays with a lot of fire, and I like that about him. He’s not going to take Steve Ott’s bullcrap, and why should he? Steve Ott is a pest and a cheap-shot artist, and several players around the league hate him for good reason. Crombeen picked up the 2-5-10 package and also got kicked out of the game, but he did the right thing to go right after Ott and give him what he deserves. Crombeen is a team player and he’s very tough, and for that I respect him. You can watch the video of this fight HERE.

The refs were just bad. Period. The fact that the Stars got a penalty out of BOTH of Steve Ott’s cheapshots is absolutely ridiculous. The refs cannot let that happen. When Steve Ott throws a low hit on Colaiacovo or knees Crombeen, of course our players are going to stick up for themselves AND each other. If the refs aren’t going to let them do that, they are basically promoting Ott’s antics and telling him that what he’s doing is okay. And it’s NOT.

Luckily, Steve Ott was suspended for two games by the NHL for his low hit on Colaiacovo, and I do agree with that, but that just shows that the refs messed up. If the NHL is willing to suspend him, how in the world did he not get a 10-minute misconduct or even get kicked out of the game? Janssen and Crombeen did, but Ott didn’t. I hardly ever make excuses, but doesn’t that seem like the refs were favoring Dallas? It does to me. The Blues definitely should have gotten powerplays out of those messes, and the fact that the Stars did is absolutely ridiculous and you can’t help but complain.

It was nice to see the Blues fight and stick up for themselves, because they are a tough team and they are good at that stuff. These games between the Blues and Stars have always been nasty, and I don’t expect it to stop. The Blues have sent a message that they play with passion, and the next time the Blues and Stars meet – Steve Ott better feel some pain. This has turned into a good rivalry.

Again, the refs were terrible tonight, and that pretty much sums it up. There was a lot to rant about when it came to this game, but now it is time to move along and look ahead.