‘Too many men on the ice’ debate hangs over Kadri OT goal

Nazem Kadri’s Game 4 overtime goal should’ve been one of those storybook, “Hollywood” moments. Instead, for many, the “too many men on the ice” debate hangs over that Kadri overtime-winner.

Cooper hints at ‘too many men on ice’ during Kadri Game 4 OT goal

Chances are, the debates were already happening. Still, Lightning coach Jon Cooper added fuel to the “too many men on the ice” fire when he wondered if Game 4 of the 2022 Stanley Cup Final would “still be happening” during his press conference.

“This one is going to sting much more than others, just because it was taking on … it was potentially … I don’t know … it’s hard for me. It’s going to be hard for me to speak. I’m going to have to speak. I’ll speak with you tomorrow,” Cooper said after Game 4, via ESPN. “You’re going to see what I mean when you see the winning goal. And my heart breaks for the players. Because we probably still should be playing.”

As Cooper mentioned, he may expand on those comments sometime on Thursday.

Watch that Kadri OT goal, starting with an alert pass by Darcy Kuemper, and a nice breakout by Artturi Lehkonen:

Initially, the focus was on how hard it was to detect that the puck was in the net. Clearly, the conversation eventually morphed into something else.

For what it’s worth, the NHL released the following statement on the matter:

This statement arose as people were really getting in the weeds. People noted that Erik Johnson was listed on the ice on a game sheet, which was then edited?

Did that matter? It only becomes more of a head-scratching situation as you dive deeper into the rabbit hole.

Fans break down debate from every angle

Every now and then, hockey fans justify comparisons to how people break down “The Zapruder Film.” The “too many men on the ice” controversy surrounding the Nazem Kadri OT goal justifies such comparisons.

Plenty of breakdowns cropped up along these lines, with people noting Kadri as Nathan MacKinnon‘s…