High Hits and Beat Downs

Scouting The Refs Podcast #RefsPodcast

Game on! The regular season is officially here. We've got goaltender interference in Columbus, possible penalty reviews, and ECHL rulebook adjustments.

Toronto Maple Leafs' Cedric Pare's knee-on-knee hit on Montreal Canadiens' Patrik Laine, and the aftermath with Arber Xhekaj going after Pare and picking up instigator, aggressor, and fighting penalties along with a $3,385 fine. Xhekaj also made headlines - and picked up a major penalty - for a high hit on Tim Stutzle of the Ottawa Senators; did the refs and the league make the right call on that play? Plus, one more case of revenge on this week's #RefsPodcast, as both Nikita Kucherov and Conor Geekie sought vengeance against Florida Panthers prospect Josh Davies for a clean, legal hit on Tampa Bay Lightning captain Victor Hedman. Kucherov earned a minor penalty, while Geekie picked up 2-5-10 and a one game suspension for leaving the bench to start an altercation.

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The Scouting The Refs Podcast is a weekly look at the world of officiating and player safety within the National Hockey League, AHL, ECHL, and other leagues around the world. We'll break down the calls and the rules behind them to help understand why a penalty or suspension was - or wasn't - handed out.

Todd Lewis is a veteran broadcaster covering the NHL and other major league sports. Lewis is a former host on the NHL Network and on NHL Network Radio. He’s also worked for TSN, Sportsnet as a host/anchor and is a producer of other programs.

Josh Smith is the founder of Scouting the Refs, the leading independent site related to hockey officiating which follows hockey officials across the NHL, AHL, ECHL, and other leagues around the world, including news, rule changes and interpretations, suspensions, and statistics on officials and penalty calls.

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