"NHL doing anything for the Leafs? Shocker": Internet reacts as Toronto Maple Leafs score game-winner after referee's bizarre puck obstruction

The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Colorado Avalanche 2-1 on Wednesday in a bizarre game in which the referee accidentally obstructed the puck, leading to the Leafs' game-winning goal.

With the game tied at 1-1 in the third period, Leafs forward Steven Lorentz scored shorthanded after Avalanche defenseman Simon Benoit's clearing attempt hit referee Kelly Sutherland instead of going down the ice.

Sutherland tried to move out of the way but ended up in the puck’s path. Lorentz collected the puck and skated in to score the goal.

Fans on social media reacted to the referee's involvement in a critical play. One fan tweeted:

"NHL doing anything for the Leafs? Shocker," implying the league favors the Leafs.

Another fan wrote:

"This should be a dead play but whatever."

Here are some fan reactions:

"Avalanche should be offered a free penalty shot if a ref impacts the play to benefit one team significantly. Obviously this stuff doesn’t happen enough to make a rule but it’s not fair lol," one fan wrote.

"If you look closely, you'll notice that he tries to get tf out of the way of the puck," another fan wrote.

"This goal actually should not have counted and if I were the Avs I would protest the game," a user commented.

"I get it’s part of the game but I think that should be a whistle and face off center ice," another user wrote.

The controversial goal was held up as the game-winner. Auston Matthews also scored for the Maple Leafs earlier in the game. Valeri Nichushkin had the lone goal for the Avalanche.

Joseph Woll made 38 saves, while Mackenzie Blackwood had 24 saves for the Avalanche

Game recap: Maple Leafs 2-1 win against Avalanche

Matthews opened the scoring for the Maple Leafs 28 seconds into the second period on a power play, deflecting off Devon Toews’ stick and into the net. The Avalanche responded at 2:48, also on the power play, when Valeri Nichushkin buried a pass from Nathan MacKinnon, beating Woll glove side from the slot.

Early in the third, Steven Lorentz put Toronto back on top, scoring a shorthanded goal at 2:53 to make it 2-1. Speaking about the ref obstruction during the game, Lorentz said:

"I'm not too sure what happened with the ref, I was trying to look to get a chance and I just saw him kind of go down a little bit, and I saw the pucks lose. So, I thought, I might as well reroute and try and go get a shot on that. "

Joseph Woll preserved the lead at 8:18 of the third with a crucial glove save on Brock Nelson’s shot from the slot.