Cheater!: Explaining Erat's Penalty Shot

This edition of "Cheater!" answers a question that several friends had following Erat's penalty-shot goal during game three, namely: "What the !@#$ is going on here?!"

I knew they were rare, but I did not realize  the quasi-historic treat Pred Nation got on Tuesday, as we watched Martin Erat's penalty shot goal.  NHL.com reports that it had been over two years since the last playoff-penalty-shot-goal.  In fact, Erat's goal was just the 19th goal on 59 total attempts in playoff history.

The Video (Ok, I couldn't find video of the penalty, but here's Erat scoring on a penalty shot, and its just as fun to watch).

The Basics: If a offensive player is on a breakaway, and a defender fouls him from behind, the result is a penalty shot (the most awesome penalty of all time!)

The Rule:  Rule 25 is damn long states in part:

"There are four (4) specific conditions that must be met in order for the Referee to award a penalty shot for a player being fouled from behind. They are:

(i)  The infraction must have taken place in the neutral zone or attacking zone, ...;

(ii)  The infraction must have been committed from behind;

(iii)  The player in possession and control ... must have been denied a reasonable chance to score...

(iv)  The player in possession and control ... must have had no opposing player between himself and the goalkeeper."


Infractions that will result in a penalty shot are: 

1. Being fouled from behind, via Holding, Hooking, Tripping, and Slashing
2. Deliberate illegal substitution
3. Deliberately dislodging the net
4. Falling on the puck in the crease
5. Picking up the puck in the crease
6. Throwing something at the skater (Pred Favorite Scotty Hartnell uses his glove as an example... poorly)

NFL Comparison:  No really good comparison, and the penalty shot is pretty self explanatory.  However, the best comparison I could come up with was this: when the defense jumps offsides, the offense often gets a "free play".  I suppose this is the "free play" of the NHL... not really though.  

Can you think of a better one? Leave it in the comments.

Cheater!: Boarding or "Thanks For Losing Us the Game, Marty"

Welcome to "Cheater!", a new feature here at Preds 101.  Cheater! is the Anatomy of a Goal (AOAG) for penalties.  For fans new to the game, we'll show you what the penalties in hockey are, and explain why you care.  For the knowledgeable  hockey fan, Cheater! will hopefully dive into the finer points of the rougher side of the game.

Our inaugural Cheater! is none other than predator's own Martin Erat (RW, #10).  His boarding penalty came with less than one minute left in the game, where the Predators where defending a 3-2 lead.  Take a look at the penalty.

The Rule

Basically, you can't hit a guy from behind into the boards.  But here is the official rule 42:  

42.1 Boarding – A boarding penalty shall be imposed on any player or goalkeeper who checks an opponent in such a manner that causes the opponent to be thrown violently in the boards. The severity of the penalty, based upon the degree of violence of the impact with the boards, shall be at the discretion of the Referee.

There is an enormous amount of judgment involved in the application of this rule by the Referees. The onus is on the player (or goalkeeper) applying the check to ensure his opponent is not in a vulnerable position and if so, he must avoid the contact. ...

Football Equivalent/Analogy: Clipping.


The Situation


As in most sports, there are smart penalties and dumb penalties.  A tripping a player on a breakaway to the net can be smart.  Erat's decision to take this boarding call, however, was not.   The Preds were outnumbered 6-to-5, because the Islanders had pulled their goalie in the hopes of scoring a goal to tie the game up.  With less than a minute remaining, the odds of scoring a goal on a 6-5 are not particularly good.  Erat's hit neither clear the puck from the zone, nor prevents a shot on goal.  No, the hit is simply a hit.  


The result is a penalty, which gives the Islanders a chance to stop play and call a time out.  The faceoff moves to the Islanders offensive zone.  Now the Predators are outnumbered 6-to-4.  The islanders score soon after. The islanders go on to win the game in a shootout, and the Predators get only one point in the standings, instead of 2.


The Poll

I plan on posting this same poll for each Cheater!.  Share any additional thoughts below in the comment section.

Anatomy of a Goal: Getting Seperation from Your Defender

Another amazing win for the Predators, puts them tied for first (and 1 1/2 games out of seventh?!) in the crazy Western Conference.  In this edition of Anatomy of a Goal, we'll examine the importance of offensive players' ability to separate from defenders (or as they'd say in football "create space").  On the Predator's first goal of the game, Jared Smithson's ability to separate sets up Martin Erat for a relatively easy first goal of the game.

Video Highlights

Video Breakdown

1. Red hot Martin Erat (Preds RW #10) and all-star defenseman Dion Phaneuf (Flames D #3) are chasing the puck into the corner.  Phaneuf (6'3'', 210 lbs.) is bigger and hits much harder than Erat.  Who, however, will be faster into the corner and around the boards?

2. Predators offensive players, including Jerred Smithson (#25) are breaking toward the net.

3. Erat's speed beats out Phaneuf.  Because Erat has half a step on Phaneuf, Phaneuf is not in a position to plaster Erat into the boards.

4.  Predators offenseive guys are still driving to the net.  Smithson is closer, but has a man on him.  He is going to find space by going to the net, backing up at a critical moment, as traced out by the dotted line.

5. This predator has a straight shot to the front of the net and takes it, in the hopes of tying up the defender there and getting traffic in front.

6.  Erat not only wins the footrace but is able to gain several steps on Phaneuf.  He is too far out to curl back toward the net to attempt a shot.  (For another look at why defensive speed is so important, check out the first "anatomy of a play" on why defensive speed is so important).

7.  Look at Smithson hit the breaks hard and start to inch backward toward the open whole where he used to be... sneaky sneaky.

8.  Erat waits until Phaneuf is almost on him, and the other Flame defender has moved futher toward the bottom of the screen.  This creates a great passing lane for Erat back to Hamhuis at the blue line.

9.  Look how much space is between Smithson and Phaneuf now.  I don't think Phaneuf knows he lost his man.

10.  Dan Hamhuis is wide open for the shot.  He takes it and fires at the net.

11.  The rebound pops out and Smithson is opportunistically right in front of it.  However, he has defenders closing fast, and the goalie would be in good position to make the save, despite the traffic in front.  Instead he will make the decision to make the quick pass to Erat.

12.  Now it is Erat who has found the open space, leaving Phaneuf a few feet lower closer to the net.

13.  Erat gets the quick pass and fires.  Phaneuf realizes he is out of position and breaks toward Erat, but its too late.  The goalie has to quickly move from his right to left, but it is also too late.  Goal Predators!

Wrap Up

Two keys to this play in my opinion.  First, the hard work and quick staking of Erat to get the puck in the corner and beat Phaneuf. Second, and probably more importantly, the ability of Smithson to find the whole in the defense and thus be open for an opportunistic pass.  That's all for this installment.  Lets' go Preds!