The Toronto Maple Leafs were short-handed when Steven Lorentz broke a 1-1 tie against the Colorado Avalanche in the third period on Wednesday, but another man on the ice kind of made it feel like it wasn’t a penalty kill.
In what was clearly an accident, referee Kelly Sutherland blocked a clearing attempt from Toronto’s Simon Benoit in the neutral zone after he lost his footing.
That allowed Lorentz to get to the puck, instead of going down the ice for Avalanche goalie Mackenzie Blackwood.
Lorentz took full advantage, gobbling up the puck and firing home the game-winner from the faceoff circle for his first goal in 19 games.
Sutherland appeared to be trying to get out of the way of Benoit’s clearance when he slipped.
As Sutherland skated to the penalty box after the goal, he looked dejected. It was, by all accounts, a total fluke that ended up helping the Leafs hold on for a 2-1 win.
Sutherland has been an NHL official since 2000 and has worked 10 Stanley Cup Finals.
Predictably, hockey fans had some fun with the play on social media. Here are some of the best reactions to Sutherland’s accidental assist.
