TORONTO – Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Mike Babcock took ownership Monday morning for a bench mistake in Saturday’s 6-4 road loss to the St. Louis Blues.
When Alex Pietrangelo scored with approximately 12 minutes left in regulation to put the Blues up 6-2, St. Louis centre Brayden Schenn had made contact with Toronto goaltender Frederik Andersen just moments prior. Watch:
Babcock did not call for a goaltender interference challenge, and the Leafs later rallied with two goals to narrow the gap. Had the Pietrangelo goal been reversed, it’s conceivable Toronto could have made it a 5-4 game and may have scored again with an extra attacker and knotted the game at five.
“We should have challenged it for sure,” Babcock said. “I’m not sure it would be [overturned]. I’ve looked at it a lot.”
Andersen told reporters post-game Saturday that he didn’t know why the play wasn’t challenged and did believe he was interfered with “a little bit.”
Regardless, the borderline play was worth a lost timeout.
Babcock explained the issue Monday.
“In St. Louis, we couldn’t see because the monitor on the bench is behind [us]. We couldn’t see that good. But in our [dressing] room our coaching staff was telling us to challenge it. We didn’t hear it on the bench,” Babcock said.
“Since that time, now not only are we hooked up to the assistant coach, we’re hooked up to the medical trainer, too. So if one doesn’t work, the second one is gonna work.
“So, it’ll never happen again. How’s that?”
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