Erik Karlsson goes ballistic on NHL referee (And he's right).

The Pittsburgh Penguins likely left last night's game against the Dallas Stars feeling like they got a bit of a raw deal, and quite frankly after seeing these video replays I think you'll understand why regardless of what team you cheer for.

During the game's second period, with just a little over 8 minutes left to go in the frame, Penguins defenseman Erik Karlsson would find himself in a rather unbelievable situation. Karlsson was skating around the back of the Penguins net, chasing the play, when suddenly his stick was yoinked clean out of his hands by Dallas Stars defenseman Lian Bichsel.

It would have been a sneaky move from Bischel except for the fact that he did it while National Hockey League referee Michael Markovic was staring at the two defensemen, which is what would in turn enrage Karlsson. In spite of the fact that it looked like there was no way Markovic could have missed the gesture, he made no call on the play and moments later Bichsel would find the back of the Penguins net.

First let's look at the goal:

As you can see from the clip, the stickless Karlsson immediately charges towards Markovic after the puck goes into the net, but the clip doesn't do justice to just how enraged Karlsson was. The veteran NHL defenseman, who is not in the habit of having prolonged outbursts at NHL officials, unloaded on Markovic with a nearly 30 second verbal tirade that included some less than friendly words directed at the referee.

You can hear Karlsson's tirade in the short clip below:

Did Karlsson overreact? Or was this a justified crash out? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.