Patrick Roy still baffled by referees’ decision on offside review

Islanders coach Patrick Roy said he wanted clarification from the NHL on his failed coach’s challenge in the first period of Tuesday’s win over the Penguins. 

Roy challenged Sidney Crosby’s goal for offside because Noel Acciari — on his way back to the bench for a line change — was still on the ice when the puck entered the offensive zone, which would seemingly have negated Pittsburgh’s goal.

After review, though, the play was ruled onside, as Acciari, who was in the process of entering the bench, had both his skates off the ice when the puck entered the zone. 

“I still believe it was offside,” Roy said after the 4-3 shootout win. “Where I need to understand is, if your foot is outside the bench, is this considered in or not? And that’s what I need to understand from the league. So I will back up my video guys and I think they made the right call to make that call [to challenge].” 

Roy said that according to what coaches had been told at the start of the season, he understood the play to be offside. 

“At the beginning of the year, they talked to us about if your skate [is] inside, it’s a warning for too many men,” Roy said. “So is your skate inside of the ice, is [it] fair play or not? That’s what I need to understand.” 

An Islanders spokesman did not respond when asked whether the team had reached out to the league regarding the call. 

Rule 83.3, for delayed offside, states that if “an attacking player in the attacking zone elects to proceed to his players’ bench … he shall be considered to have cleared the zone when both skates are off the ice and the Linesperson judges him to have left the playing surface.” 

Further to that, the situation handbook given to officials also says that a player in such a situation “is considered off the ice when both skates are no longer touching the ice and the Linesperson has judged him to have left the playing surface and entered his bench.” 

So, since Acciari was considered to have left the playing surface, even if the puck had hit him, the play would have been blown dead not for offside but as if the puck had gone into the Pittsburgh bench. 

Artem Zub (concussion) and Shane Pinto (undisclosed) are both possibilities to return from injury on Thursday for the Senators, coach Travis Green told media in Ottawa.

Pinto is a native of Franklin Square, N.Y. 

The Islanders have won a majority of faceoffs for a franchise-record 12 straight games, per team statistician Eric Hornick. 

A starter in goal for Thursday’s game against the Senators has not yet been announced, but Ilya Sorokin’s three straight starts mark his longest starting streak since late February and early March of last season, when he was in nets for six consecutive games. 

The Islanders did not hold practice on Wednesday before traveling to Ottawa.