Montgomery explains animated gestures behind Bruin’s bench in Game 5, originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston
Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery seemed angry at the Florida Panthers trying to draw penalties by flopping and diving in Tuesday night’s Game 5, and he had a funny way of expressing that displeasure to the officials.
The TV cameras caught Montgomery acting out behind the Bruins bench in an attempt to show the officials what he believed the Panthers were doing to get undeserved power plays.
As you might imagine, these videos quickly went viral and became the focus of a number of funny memes.
Fortunately for the Bruins, these penalties cost them nothing. Boston’s penalty kill went 4-for-4, giving the Original Six club a 2-1 victory and forcing a Game 6 in Boston on Friday night.
After the match, Montgomery was asked about his animated reaction to some penalties awarded against his team.
“Well, I just think in the league in general, embellishments are going up,” Montgomery said. “Players are getting better at grabbing their heads, snapping their heads back, getting hooked and going with the hook and rebounding.
“When I was growing up, Billy Barber was the guy most known for getting a lot of penalties. And I just think it makes it difficult for the referees, you know? Because you don’t know if someone is really in trouble or if they’re just trying to make a phone 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 (control) both went to the box for two minutes.
Decorating or diving has helped Florida make several power plays in this series. A good example occurred in Game 4 when Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson broke 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 took advantage of when Sam Bennett scored in controversial fashion.
Will Montgomery’s comments have any impact on the lead in Game 6? Either way, the Bruins need to do a better job of staying out of the box. They fell short 25 times in the second round, more than any other team in the playoffs.
