Using puck-tracking technology for NHL video review would have saved everyone a lot of debating about what happened between the Edmonton Oilers and Anaheim Ducks on Sunday.
The NHL's Stanley Cup playoffs never seem to lack drama.
But in the case of the Anaheim Ducks' overtime goal against the Edmonton Oilers in Sunday's Game 4, the NHL could have avoided the drama by making better use of its puck-tracking technology.
The league has puck-tracking capability to measure statistics, but it has not been implemented for video review thus far. Being able to decipher controversial calls in a definitive, objective way through puck-tracking technology would take much of the heat off the league and its officials.
On Sunday's game-winning goal, Ryan Poehling fired a centering pass that deflected off Oilers defenseman Darnell Nurse and through the legs of goalie Tristan Jarry.
On the overhead net camera, Jarry's skate is over the puck and the goal line, making it difficult to determine whether it fully crossed the goal line.
The on-ice official signalled a goal. In a review, the NHL Situation Room ruled the puck completely crossed the goal line, but the photo it used still shows Jarry's skate covering the view. If there was inconclusive evidence, they could only go with the referee's call on the ice and award a goal.
Naturally, Oilers fans were apoplectic at the result, because the referees didn't have a good enough view to award a goal, and even a video review makes it almost too close to call.
You can understand the sentiment of Edmonton fans, as this could be the key turning point in the series. The Ducks took the 4-3 win and now have a 3-1 series lead.
"It's completely outrageous that they called it a goal on the ice," former Oilers netminder Devan Dubnyk said on The Hockey News Big Show on Monday. "That's really where the controversy is here. It's because, how much does the call on the ice affect what they're looking at, and I don't really have an answer."
"You've got this play on the ice, that we're now in zoomed-in, slow-motion stop time, still not entirely sure that it crossed the line, but apparently, they knew it was in on the ice," Dubnyk added. "That's outrageous. You have one referee that's even slightly in position to see, which he's not, and he's not out of position, but he's just not in a place that you'd ever be able to know if that puck's in the net."
This is where puck-tracking technology would've saved everyone their time and grievances.
Each puck has an infrared emitter, and cameras can detect infrared signals from the pucks up to 60 times a second.
If you have the overhead camera inside the net detect the signals, or some kind of sensor below the goal line that detects whenever a puck fully crosses the goal line, we would have virtually indisputable evidence of whether a goal should count.
The debate wouldn't be about whether the referee should have called a goal on the ice. It wouldn't be about whether the puck actually crossed the line or not. All the subjectivity would be removed from the equation.
Now, NHL deputy commissioner told Sportsnet's The Fan Pre-Game show on Monday the league is working on that reliable technology, but it would be difficult to implement.
"It is difficult to have a definitive technology that sees through all that traffic, even in the form of something embedded in the puck," Daly said. "We haven't found a fail-proof technology yet."
He also said he doesn't think it's a burning issue among NHL teams. But clearly, Sunday night showed it can make the difference between an overtime-winner and a save. So even if there is something that's not 100 percent accurate right away but gives a much, much better review of the play, then we're getting somewhere.
We'll never completely remove the subjective nature of officiating the sport. But it's clear that technology can be a help and not a hindrance in hockey.
If we can track pucks for statistical clarity, we can also use that tech for officiating clarity. Surely Oilers fans would want that right about now for closure.
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