Sergei Gomolyako: we are outraged by officiating

- Two minutes prior to the end of this game Neftekhimik scored what later would turn out to be a game-winning goal. However, fans in attendance, those watching at home, and journalists saw that Igor Polygalov scored this goal when Michael Garnett was knocked down by Yegor Milovzorov – everyone saw that except for the officials Pavel Komarov and Sergei Kulakov. Once again, the officials interjected themselves into the fights that players on the ice fight.

Currently, there are five teams vying for two playoff spots in the Eastern Conference, and every point matters. We are outraged by the fact that the referees did not stop the game and make the goaltender interference call. Traktor has 13 games within the span of one month, and this is the clutch time when the participants of the playoffs are being determined.

What many fail to understand is that the officials get involved in the fate of one of the hockey towns of Russia, in the fate of team management and players who have one goal on their minds – getting into the playoffs. Hockey is a game of nuance, and oftentimes egregious calls like this turn out to be very decisive. Traktor put on a very decent performance against Neftekhimik, and we would like everyone in the hockey world treat us with proper amount of respect.