Game 7 Officiating

Well tonight is going to be a very exciting night. It's all on the line between two highly skilled and determined teams. The 15th game 7 for the Cup in NHL History.

Now lets hope, the officials don't get in the way. If there is one thing that can overshadow a great game, series, and season is a blown call that leads to a team winning or losing the game.

Tonight the officials are Paul Devorski and Bill McCreary wearing the orange arm bands. Jean Morin and Pierre Racicot are working the lines.

So that's a very experienced crew. Hopefully this post and the announcement of the officials at the beginning of the game is the last time you will really notice them all that much.

I don't wanna see a lot of calls, I don't wanna see them throw away the whistle. I just wanna see an evenly called, consistent game out of two of the best NHL referees. The league is under a lot of criticism for the lack of consistency when it comes to officiating. Game 7 tonight could go a long way in getting their reputation back on track.

Like mentioned above this is the 15th all time Game 7 in Stanley Cup finals history. Home teams are 12-2 all time in game 7. The only two teams to win on the road were Toronto in 1945 over Detroit, and Montreal in 1971 over Chicago.

In the six times that a Game 7 has been needed when the home team won every game leading up to it, the home team is 6-0.

One key player to look out for tonight. Pittsburgh's Ruslan Fedetenko. He scored both goals for the Tampa Bay Lightning in a 2-1 Game 7 victory over the Calgary Flames to win the Cup in 2004.

Game 7 tonight June 12th at Joe Louis Arena. 8pm EST. On NBC,CBC,RDS
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AHL note for the Calder Cup Finals

Game 6 and 7 if necessary between Hershey and Manitoba will both be televised locally in Winnipeg and in Central Pennsylvania. The Bears lead the series 3-2. Game 6 is tonight at 8:30 EST. Check your local listings if you are in that area. No word if the NHL network will pick up either one or both these games.