Detroit Red Wings forward Teemu Pulkkinen has been fined $2,000 for diving/embellishment. His is the first diving fine handed out by the NHL this season.
Pulkkinen was given a warning after the Wings played the Vancouver Canucks on October 24. His second diving charge came on November 8, during Detroit’s game against the Dallas Stars.
There was no whistle on the play from referee Francois St. Laurent, who had a good look from below the goal line.
Pulkkinen was not penalized for diving/embellishment in either game. The infractions were caught by NHL Hockey Ops during their regular review of the games.
Pulkkinen did draw a penalty in that Canucks game which could possibly be the dive identified by Hockey Ops. Referee Dan O’Rourke called Vancouver’s Dan Hamhuis for hooking on the play:
As a reminder, here’s the league’s scale for diving/embellishment penalties:
Pulkkinen’s the first player to hit two citations this season. While fines are made public, warnings are not. Players can receive a citation regardless of whether they were called for diving during the game or if their infraction was identified through video review by the league.
The Diving/Embellishment Review Process
The NHL’s Hockey Operations department tracks every diving or embellishment penalty called on the ice. They also review each game to identify possible dives that were missed by the on-ice officials. (In some cases, they even rescind those diving penalties that may have been called during a game. Boston’s Brad Marchand was the beneficiary of such a modification.)
Once the Hockey Ops team agrees that a dive has taken place, they issue a citation. Cox reports that there are nine individuals who participate in the review of each incident. If six decide that a dive has taken place, the player is cited.
So far this season, Pulkkinen is the recipent of the first fine handed out. He certainly won’t be the last. The question is: who’s next?
