The NHL has some major refereeing problems that have been present for years, and this year's playoffs are no exception.

Gary Bettman has chosen four referees:

Congratulations to the 2024 Stanley Cup Final Officials:
Referees: Jean Hebert, Steve Kozari, Dan O'Rourke, Chris Rooney
Linesmen: Devin Berg, Ryan Daisy, Matt MacPherson, Jonny Murray

Immediately upon this announcement, NHL insider Pierre LeBrun commented:

Lots of pressure on these 4 refs when you consider Oilers' power play. Major theme in this Cup final

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Fans immediately called out possible bias from these referees, who have all made their fair share of bad calls in their careers:

This is how they fix the Finals. Using the same 4 biased refs throughout. Florida wins due to the all American #buttmanAgenda. Here we go again... http://thebluepaint.com #31YearsAndCounting #ZipCodeCup #ButtmanAgenda #NHLBookiesRiggedHockeyLeague

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Wow . Rourke and Kozari .. Oilers are screwed.

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There is no reason, no reason at all the NHL should've picked Kozari. Hes shown clear bias vs Edmonton and there's a history of issues there. Simplest choice just to select a different ref and somehow they f**k up. NHL proving why it remains the worst ran league

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Steve Kozari is known for his possible bias against the Edmonton Oilers, giving the Florida Panthers a possible edge. It will certainly be an interesting series!

Credit HockeyFeed:
Controversy arises after 4 referees are named for Stanley Cup Final

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JUNE 7 |268 ANSWERS

NHL's referee choices for the Stanley Cup Finals causes major controversy