Brad Marchand falsely accused by NHL officials on Saturday!

 Boston Bruins forward Brad Marchand has built up quite the reputation for himself over the years but, although that has often served him well as one of the top agitators in the National Hockey League, it also does come with some downsides.

On Saturday during a game against the New York Islanders, Marchand was reminded of some of those downsides when he found himself in the penalty box for high-sticking. Marchand, who is no stranger when it comes to trips to the penalty box, was furious when he heard the call and made sure he let the officials know about it, protesting the decision by yelling from the penalty box.

The problem for Marchand here was that Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech came up bleeding from his face after there had been contact between the two men, prompting officials on the ice to feel as though a call needed to be made. Unfortunately for Marchand his reputation appears to have cost him this time around, in spite of the fact that you can see in the replay that there was never any high-sticking in this particular sequence.

Some have been quick to point to a potential punch, accidental or otherwise, on the part of Marchand as the two men battle for the puck, but that was on the left side of Pelech's face whereas the cut itself is on the right side as you can see below. 

Marchand may have been right to protest this call, but unfortunately as is so often the case in the NHL those protests have fallen on deaf ears.