After the uproar caused by the Montreal Canadiens’ 6–5 loss to the Edmonton Oilers, many expected a swift response from the NHL. The statements made by Brendan Gallagher, Cole Caufield, and head coach Martin St-Louis were direct and incendiary, openly blaming the referees for the outcome. Yet, against all expectations, the league has not issued any fines.
The lack of disciplinary action has sparked confusion and speculation. On social media, the sentiment was summed up in a post by HFTV Sports:
“No fines for the Habs last night eh? It’s almost as if they were right.” A simple tweet that hints at an uncomfortable possibility: is the NHL avoiding punishment to sidestep acknowledging officiating errors?
Caufield’s words were blunt: “The refs kind of took over the game there and kudos to them for winning it.” Gallagher went even further, revealing that officials admitted to a mistake regarding Slafkovsky’s penalty: “They told me it wasn’t a penalty, that they made a mistake.”
Under normal circumstances, such comments would typically result in fines for publicly criticizing referees. But this time, nothing. No warning. No penalty. The league’s silence is being interpreted by many as a strategy to let the controversy cool down without escalating it.
Meanwhile, Canadiens fans are savoring what feels like a small moral victory. No points were recovered, but no punishment was handed down for speaking out. And in the middle of a media storm, that says a lot.