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Braden Holtby thinks NHL refs are the bee’s knees

Scott Gomez Braden Holtby Scott Hannan

Montreal Canadiens’ Scott Gomez is shoved into Washington Capitals’ Braden Holtby by Capitals defenseman Scott Hannan during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, March 15, 2011, in Montreal. (AP Photo/The Canadian Press, Paul Chiasson)

AP

Braden Holtby might just have bought himself a few calls with the nice things he’s been saying about NHL officials.

When the Capitals’ rookie goalie was asked if he was worried about the Boston Bruins crashing his crease during their first-round series, Holtby replied that he’s been through worse in the minors.

“To tell you the truth, the NHL game in front of the net is a lot easier than the AHL game. The refs are a lot more precise in their calls. That’s obviously why they’re in the NHL,” Holtby said, as per the Washington Post. “The AHL there’s a lot of stuff that goes that should be penalties and it isn’t. So that’s one thing that I think I do have to my advantage is that I’ve learned to deal through that…..People always come up saying that it was really physical and it wasn’t. It didn’t seem that way for me. So I think that’s an advantage.”

Holtby went on to say that NHL refs deserve a huge raise and that they’re the handsomest refs in sports.

But in all seriousness, it’ll be interesting to see how strict the referees are with goaltender interference during the playoffs, as it’s been such a hot-button topic this season.

Here’s VP Player Safety, Brendan Shanahan, discussing the topic on a recent episode of NHL Live.