New Jersey Devils goaltender Akira Schmid was penalized for playing the puck past the center red line against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Columbus was called for a delayed tripping penalty. As the Devils maintained possession, Schmid headed off the ice in favor of an extra skater.
A pass from Michael McLeod bounced up the boards, eluding Kevin Bahl at the point and heading out to center. The Devils goalie, on his way to the bench, instinctively stopped the puck before it reached the red line.
Rule 27.7 forbids the goaltender from playing the puck past center ice:
If a goalkeeper participates in the play in any manner (intentionally plays the puck or checks an opponent) when he is beyond the center red line, a minor penalty shall be imposed upon him.
The position of the puck is the determining factor for the application of this rule.
It’s possible that the call could have also been made for too many men on the ice, as Schmid appears to play the puck after his replacement has already taken the ice.
Rule 27.7 was put in place in 1967, after goaltender Gary ‘Suitcase’ Smith was laid out by Montreal Canadiens’ defenseman J.C. Tremblay as he skated over the blueline into the attacking zone. The league figured they’d better protect goalies by keeping them on the defensive side of the ice.
The rule was rarely tested, though Patrick Roy gave it a go, attempting to deke past Wayne Gretzky at center ice back in 1997.
The last time it was called was back in 2006, when Vancouver Canucks goaltender Alex Auld was penalized in a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins — also on a delayed penalty.
“I got excited,” Auld told the Pittsburgh Post Gazette at the time. “It’s not often the goalie gets to play the puck.”
The New Jersey Devils went on to win the game 6-3. Referees were Chris Rooney (#5) and Morgan MacPhee (#43) with linesmen Shandor Alphonso (#52) and Julien Fournier (#56).
