This is why the Leafs' goal was disallowed in Game 5
Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly thought he scored the game-tying goal late in the second period of Friday's Game 5 loss to the Florida Panthers but a video review resulted in a no-goal decision.
Fans at Scotiabank Arena watched a video replay of the puck crossing the line and were irate that Florida retained its 2-1 lead.
Some spectators threw debris on the ice after the decision was announced. Between the review and the ensuing cleanup, play was delayed for about 10 minutes.
The NHL's Situation Room issued an explanation of the decision a short time later.
“The referee deemed the play dead prior to the puck crossing the Florida line. The call was made in accordance to Rule 78.5 (xii), which states apparent goals shall be disallowed ”when the referee deems the play has been stopped, even if he had not physically had the opportunity to stop play by blowing his whistle.“
Rielly, who scored Toronto's first goal earlier in the period, drove toward the net and appeared to slide the puck under goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky's right pad with 2:49 left in the period.
The blueliner started celebrating and skated toward the bench to touch gloves with his teammates.
“It happened quickly and obviously they reviewed it, so it is what it is,” Rielly said.
Initial replays shown on the arena's video screens were inconclusive. Eventually, a clip was shown that clearly showed the puck was a couple of centimetres over the line.
Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly (44) stands with teammates after scoring, what would be ruled a disallowed goal following a video review against the Florida Panthers during second period NHL second round Stanley Cup playoff hockey action in Toronto, on Friday, May 12, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young
'NO GOAL' was trending on Twitter after the decision.
“I thought it was in,” said Maple Leafs forward John Tavares. “I was heading to the net and I was right there. From my vantage point I thought it was in. Obviously they looked at it and had their reasoning that they explained.
“It just didn't go our way but I thought we stayed with it and obviously found the equalizer later.”
The Maple Leafs tied the game at 15:33 of the third period when William Nylander beat Bobrovsky.
But Nick Cousins scored the overtime winner to give Florida a 4-1 series victory and a berth in the Eastern Conference final.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 12, 2023.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6946509.1719687583!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Who are the richest people in Canada? Here's how many billionaires there are
If you gathered all the wealth that billionaires currently have worldwide, you would have about US$14.2 trillion, according to Forbes Magazine. But what about in Canada alone?
'7 years of regret': Raunchy leg piece wins bad tattoo competition at Edmonton Expo Centre
Friday night was a celebration of mistakes for a small group of body art enthusiasts.
Time crunch, rules mess could plague a Liberal leadership race
Calls have intensified for Justin Trudeau to resign as head of the party he almost single-handedly pulled back from the brink after a decimating electoral defeat in 2011.
Despair in the air: For many voters, the Biden-Trump debate means a tough choice just got tougher
The sound you might have heard after the presidential debate this past week was of voters falling between a rock and a hard place.
Lightning deal Sergachev, Jeannot; Maple Leafs acquire Tanev's rights at NHL draft
General managers wheeled and dealed Saturday in Sin City.
235 flights cancelled as WestJet waits to hear from labour minister on next steps in mechanics strike
WestJet said 235 flights have been cancelled Saturday as it waits to see what the next steps are in its ongoing labour dispute with its mechanics.
A year ago, she drank battery acid to escape life under the Taliban. Today, she has a message for other Afghan girls
Holding a mirror steady in one hand, Arzo carefully applies pencil to her brows as she gets ready for an English lesson a short walk from her home on the outskirts of Pakistani megacity Karachi.
A Florida auctioneer was about to sell an 1800s pocket watch. He learned it was a stolen piece of U.S. presidential history
A pocket watch that belonged to Theodore 'Teddy' Roosevelt was returned to his New York home this week after it was stolen decades ago and later showed up at an auction, according to the FBI and the National Park Service.
U.S. and Europe warn Lebanon's Hezbollah to ease strikes on Israel and back off from wider Mideast war
U.S., European and Arab mediators are pressing to keep stepped-up cross-border attacks between Israel and Lebanon's Iran-backed Hezbollah militants from spiraling into a wider Middle East war that the world has feared for months. Iran and Israel traded threats Saturday of what Iran said would be an 'obliterating" war over Hezbollah.