from Matt Porter of the Boston Globe,

It is the National Hockey League’s nightmare scenario.

In the Stanley Cup Final, the high time of this multibillion-dollar sport, ardent supporters and casual hockey fans aren’t raving about the feats of Brad Marchand and Ryan O’Reilly, of Zdeno Chara and Alex Pietrangelo, of Tuukka Rask and Jordan Binnington.

They’re rehashing the failures of the men in stripes.

Those unfamiliar with the sport are asking about Kelly Sutherland, the latest referee to fall flat on the biggest stage. The NHL’s officiating crisis, renewed Thursday night at TD Garden, has created a critical point.

Sutherland, considered one of the league’s best referees, did not see — or see fit to call — a penalty when St. Louis Blues forward Tyler Bozak upended Bruins forward Noel Acciari with a leg sweep in the third period of Game 5. Acciari, who fell backward and hit his head on the ice, was taken out of the play and the game. With Acciari on his knees after the hit, the Blues scored what would be the winning goal — hockey’s ultimate insult to injury. The Blues can clinch the Stanley Cup in Game 6 on Sunday night in St. Louis.

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