Montgomery explains animated gestures behind Bruins bench in Game 5 originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery appeared to be upset at the Florida Panthers trying to draw penalties in Tuesday night’s Game 5 by flopping and diving, and he had a funny way of voicing that displeasure to the referees.
The TV cameras caught Montgomery putting on his own acting performance behind the Bruins bench in an attempt to show the officials what he felt the Panthers were doing to get undeserved power plays.
As you might imagine, these videos quickly went viral and became the focus of some funny memes.
Luckily for the Bruins, these penalties didn’t cost them. Boston’s penalty kill went 4-for-4, helping the Original Six club earn a 2-1 win and force a Game 6 back in Boston on Friday night.
After the game, Montgomery was asked about his animated response to some of the penalties called on his team.
“Well, I just think in the league in general, the embellishments (are) going up,” Montgomery said. “Players are getting better and better at grabbing their heads, snapping their heads back, getting hooked and going with the hook and jumping back.
“Used to be when I was growing up, Billy Barber was the guy that was known best for it and drew a lot of penalties because of it. And I just think it makes it hard on the refs, you know? Because you don’t know if a guy was really high-stuck or if he’s just trying to get a call.”
The Panthers were actually called for one embellishment penalty in Game 5 when Anton Lundell was hit by Morgan Geekie in the first period. Lundell and Geekie (cross-checking) both went to the box for two minutes.
Embellishing or diving has helped Florida get several power plays in this series. One good example happened in Game 4 when Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson snapped his head back in the third period and drew an interference penalty on Bruins defenseman Hampus Lindholm. There was minimal contact, but the Panthers got a power play, which they capitalized on when Sam Bennett scored in controversial fashion.
Will Montgomery’s comments have any impact on the officiating in Game 6? Either way, the Bruins need to do a better job of staying out of the penalty box. They have been shorthanded 25 times in the second round, more than any other team left in the playoffs.
