The Blackhawks lost Game 4 against the St. Louis Blues 4-3 this evening in Chicago, and they’re now just a game away from their Stanley Cup defense ending after one round. The Blues scored two goals early in the third period to break a 2-2 tie, and the Blackhawks lost their cool. Andrew Shaw earned a two-minute penalty for interference with two minutes left in the game and he did not take his punishment without protest.
He flipped in-glove double birds as he skated to the penalty box and looked heated throughout his entire time there. Here is the penalty, the birds, and some yelling:
Once he got to the box, he banged his stick on the glass and yelled something at an official as he skated by. It appears that he yells “Fuck you, fucking faggot, fuck you,” but it’s not entirely clear, and there’s no audio from inside the penalty box:
Shaw also yelled something very similar to officials as he was initially called for the penalty:
When he left the penalty box with seconds left in the loss, he immediately tried to start a fight. Reporters asked him about what he said to the officials and he went with the “heat of battle” argument, which sounds like a weak excuse:
Two weeks ago the Blackhawks partnered with You Can Play, an organization working against homophobia in sports. Rajon Rondo got suspended for a game for a similar offense earlier this season, but given the visibility of Shaw’s meltdown, he might get a more severe penalty.