Penalty shot!

I don't have much in the way of statistics to back this up, but it seems to me penalty shots are happening at a much greater rate since the end of the 2005 lockout than beforehand. Now don't get me wrong, they're exciting. And I'm all for seeing more. But I have to wonder about some of these calls. It came to a head for me tonight during the Canada-Germany game when the Canadians were awarded a penalty shot under what I will call "dubious" circumstances. Canada's Rick Nash was on a "clear breakaway," with less than half a step on the German players pursuing him when he took a shot, turned his back to the goal, and tripped over German netminder Thomas Greiss. I'm sorry kids, but that is not a play deserving of a penalty shot. Let's have a look at Rule 25.8 - ii, which states "the infraction must have been committed from behind." Right there this play goes out as a legitimate shot. On New Years Eve during the Canada-USA World Junior Championship game, an American player was awarded a shot on an infraction from behind-- but with a defending player between himself and the goal. Again we'll consult the rules: Rule 25.8 - iv says "the player in possession and control (or, in the judgment of the Referee, clearly would have obtained possession and control of the puck) must have had no opposing player between himself and the goalkeeper." I'm not the type to arbitrarily hate on the referees. Their job is not easy, and it's not a job I can do. And to try to do so from my seat in the stands or my couch is unfair to them. For the most part, I don't complain about calls either for or against my team. But getting penalty shot calls wrong can unfairly change the balance of a game, and that's not fair to the players. So they irk me. (Blown offsides calls, too). I don't want to be the Grumpy Gus that says we need to take this exciting play out of the game, but I do want to be the fan that stands up and says we need to see more consistency in the calls, within the framework of the rules. I don't think that's too much to ask.