The American Hockey League is reacting to one of the more hilarious infractions we're bound to see on a professional ice surface, according to a report from TSN's Darren Dreger.
Bridgeport Sound Tigers goaltender David Leggio made waves in the hockey world when he chose to purposely knock the net off its moorings -- and onto its side -- instead of facing a 2-on-0 break from the opposition. The opposing team was awarded a penalty shot, which Leggio appeared more than happy to concede, even calling for it himself showing that he knew exactly what he was doing.
Here's a new angle of the infraction from the Sound Tigers:
So it's a little out of the ordinary, but on the gamesmanship front, it's pretty clever. Of course, video of this went wild through the hockey media as it's rather funny. The American Hockey League did not think it was funny.
According to Dreger, the AHL has adopted a rule change that would make plays like Leggio's an offense worthy of a game misconduct penalty. More from Dreger:
AHL rule change. Gm Misconduct to offending goalie, penalty shot can be taken by anyone on ice, and replacement goalie faces the shot.
— Darren Dreger (@DarrenDreger) November 6, 2014
Aw, come on, that's no fun.
Well, you can understand the league's embarrassment, and probably surprise, in this situation. They, and any other hockey league, have probably never seen anything like this. Therefore, there were no real rules to address it aside from the one that already exists, which is granting the opposing team a penalty shot for displacing the net on purpose.
Leggio may have made a bit of a mockery of the game on the play instead of competing against a 2-on-0 the old fashioned way. But since it was legal at the time, it will go down as one of the funnier heads-up plays we'll see anywhere in the game. And now we know it will probably never be repeated in the AHL.
