The league’s communications director Tuomas Nyholm thinks that Pelicans pilot Tommi Niemelä didn’t comment on the referees’ success on Wednesday because of the general “gentleman rule” of the series.
The second final match of the SM league live on Puhee on Friday evening from 18:10.
Pelicans head coach Tommi Niemelä said after Wednesday’s first final game of the Norwegian Hockey Championship that he is not allowed to comment on the referees’ successes. The pilot of the team from Lahti, which experienced a clear 1-5 loss to Tappara in Tampere, said many times, “he is not allowed to comment”.
According to the league’s management, Niemelä is allowed to comment on the referees’ actions in accordance with etiquette, but the league has internal sanctions for “excesses”.
During the opening final, Niemelä was clearly in circles, when Tappara’s opening goal was accepted after Pelicans’ challenge.
– It’s a clear interference of the goalkeeper. How it was accepted is still beyond me. Everyone who has ever been in goal knows that if you get hit in the neck with a stick, you won’t get the same start in the next situation, former goalkeeper Niemelä reckoned after the final.
When Niemelä was asked about the success of the judges, he pulled the strings.
– I am not allowed to comment on these, Niemelä began.
– It’s such a weird situation in Finland that I’m not allowed to comment, he answered when the question was repeated.
Elegance practice and sanctions behind dodging?
The league’s director of communications Tuomas Nyholm thinks that Niemelä did not comment on the success of the judges because of the general “gentleman rule” of the series.
– I would think that Niemelä is referring here to the general style practice that has been in power in Liiga for years, Nyholm explained to Urheilu by phone.
– We hope that the referees will be talked about after the games with the same respect as the players and other characters. These were last agreed separately at the beginning of this season. It has been agreed together that we will not go down the line of criticism without style after the matches. I emphasize that this is specifically about style issues and not gags or the like.
Based on Nyholm’s speeches, the League has an internal sanctioning system for overshooting.
– This season has been discussed with Niemelä. What is an internal sanctioning system is an internal sanctioning system. In public, we don’t want to open this system.
The league’s director of communications did not speculate whether the Pelicans pilot did not comment on the refereeing because the text was so harsh.
– Niemelä is a very skilled user of words. I have a lot of respect for him both as a person and as a coach. He knows how to choose his words in many ways. It is perhaps wiser to ask Tommi why he decided to comment like this, Nyholm decided.