CLLCTR5 wrote:
 
> You can look at it that way...or you can put yourself in the most thankless
> profession there is in the world (save teaching) and realize that the fact
> that NCAA officals are just now realizing that it might be a good idea to keep
> there own names out of the hail of mostly exaggerated and biased thunder
> coming from the audience-that never applauds them-is pretty amazing. Now only
> knowledgeable fans will know who the refs are and the criticism will be much
> more realistic. It's about time they used there heads.
 
I try not to criticize officials for things they simply aren't looking in the
right direction for, or even (too much) the calls/non-calls where there are
different possible interpretations of what happened.  And  I'm also not afraid to
praise refs that I think do a good job, like Frank Cole in the OSU-Yale game or
the crew that did the Michigan-North Dakota game (a view which I think I was the
only one in Yost to hold, but more about that in a different post).
 
Don "I Missed the Call by THAT MUCH" Adam, however, was TERRIBLE in the other two
West Regional games.  It's not because he misses things, rather that he decides
not to call them.  I have three criticisms of the Adam, Shepherd, Campion crew
that apply to most of the WCHA crews, but Adam in particular:
 
1. Checking from behind into the boards is pretty much okay.  Once in a while,
it'll get you two minutes for cross-checking, but that's about it.  It's not that
he doesn't get any opportunities; it's now pretty much routine for him to let it
go four or five times a game.
 
2. The third period will be penalty free.  Actually, he seems to have upped it to
one call per third period; that's what we got both nights in Ann Arbor.  Adam must
not have filled his March quota yet.  All other mayhem is quite okay.  Anything
from interference to spearing to attempted beheadings shall go uncalled.  (In all
fairness, the last of these actually requires overtime.)
 
3. The linesmen, excuse me, assistant referees don't call a thing.  The HE guys
impressed me by actually doing their job (much to Josh Langfeld's surprise, too).
 
Consequently, every game in which I see Adam turns into mayhem by the end.  And he
doesn't seem to get it.
 
J. Michael Neal
 
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