Another contentious refereeing decision in the NHL? It’s hardly surprising anymore. This time, the New York Rangers’ JT Miller appeared to have received a cup check from Calgary Flames defenseman Kevin Bahl during the game earlier today. After the incident, Miller’s teammate Zibanejad took immediate issue with the refs, but still there was no penalty, and the Flames won 2-1. So what’s the whole story?

With the NHL referees currently under scrutiny due to some of their recent calls, or lack thereof, the situation has certainly escalated beyond just the check and has transformed into a flurry of discourse on X, offering us some more insight into what could have happened.

It’s no secret that on New Year’s Eve 2024, JT Miller and Bahl got into another little scuffle right after the puck drop, after what seemed to be a tense verbal exchange. Though refs broke that one up and everyone seemed hunky-dory when they took their places on the bench, one can’t help but wonder if there was some building resentment that led to the most recent cup check, which would, in turn, call for a penalty.

On the other hand, some fans feel like the incident was blown out of proportion by JT Miller and didn’t warrant this sort of reaction, or any reaction at all. Given all the nuances at play, it’s interesting to see what exactly fans have inferred about the incident. 

Did the cup check on JT Miller warrant a penalty? Fans weigh in

Some fans immediately drew the parallel between this incident and other controversial calls that NHL officials have been making lately saying, “and no penalty obviously.” It’s clear that fan frustration has been building with every penalization or absence of one.

At the same time, others offered insight into the double standards when it comes to calls these days, with one X user drawing attention to Zibanejad’s behavior with the refs after the fact, saying, “okay pointing at the ref yelling looks a lot more aggressive than bedards misconducts.”

To provide some context, Blackhawks Connor Bedard faced a controversial ten-minute penalty, with just over 9 minutes on the clock in a recent game against the Sharks, for ‘abuse of officials,’ though to many his behavior seemed completely tame. And then he faced another 10-minute penalty in his very next game against the Vancouver Canucks during a scrum.

Still, some are sympathetic to the refs, with one X user writing, “I see players are starting to let the anger at refs boil over.” Sure, maybe a lot of the frustration is a symptom of the distrust as a whole and not specific instances, which only means more classes in diplomacy for Gary Bettman.

Then again, there were also the complete non-believers, the fans who were just not buying JT Miller’s reaction and the incident, “mmm. I gotta call BS.” One X user concurred, adding, “One handed, done w/ wrist action instead of elbow, seems a bit high to begin with. Either the guy decided not to wear protection or he’s selling it, or both.”

This view further complicates the issue; maybe JT Miller was just angling for a penalty. After all, he had some bad blood with Bahl, and a power play certainly wouldn’t have hurt the Rangers. Though there were similar comments that drew on the seemingly exaggerated nature of the fallout, comparing it to an “NBA style reaction tbh.” The NBA is famous for its flops or fake fouls, so much so that it even has a rule to curb them, offering the opposing team a free throw if the refs spot one. However, judging by the way things have been going with NHL refs recently, NBA curbing tactics would likely only further complicate matters.