Calgary Flames defenceman Noah Hanifin had a pair of goals in Saturday's contest against the Toronto Maple Leafs, but the second came with some controversy inside Scotiabank Arena.
Hanifin took the shot from just outside the left faceoff circle, throwing the puck towards the Maple Leafs' net, which goaltender Matt Murray believed was in his glove. The puck was in fact loose and trickled between his pads and across the goal line as the whistle was blown.
Following a review by the on-ice officials, the goal was ruled good for the Flames because the shot completely crossed the line as a culmination of a continuous play, according to the NHL's situation room. Murray had not made the save on Hanifin's shot, and the puck was crossing the goal line as a result.
This decision was in accordance with Rule 37.3(i), which states when a goal is subject to video review, such as a "Puck entering the net as the culmination of a continuous play where the result of the play was unaffected by any whistle blown by the Referee upon his losing sight of the puck."
So, as Hanifin's shot was crossing the line as a continuous play almost simultaneously to the whistle sounding, the goal was allowed.
The Maple Leafs would go on to win the game 5-4 thanks to an overtime winner by Mitch Marner.
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