Stanley Cup Playoffs 2012: Coyotes Coach Dave Tippett Foolish to Blame Referees

Phoenix Coyotes head coach Dave Tippett is wrong to criticize the refereeing in his team's Western Conference Finals series against the Los Angeles Kings because it's his players who are the reason L.A. holds a commanding 3-0 series lead.

Per ProHockeyTalk:

"

If I told you what I really thought it would cost me a lot of money,” Tippett said. “The game is turning a little dishonest [when it comes to] embellishment by the players. When it’s done well, it’s very hard for the referees. If you fall down by the boards, if you drop your stick or throw your head back you put the refs in a hard position … it makes the game dishonest.”

"

There's been some embellishing on both sides, and players have gotten away with a few dives, but unfortunately that's normal in today's NHL, even in the playoffs.

The Coyotes cannot talk about officiating when they're down 0-3 and getting dominated in every facet of the game against the Kings.

Phoenix goaltender Mike Smith has been subpar in this series, although he was good in the Game 3 loss on Thursday night.

Coyotes forwards Radim Vrbata, Ray Whitney and Shane Doan have a combined one point in three games against the Kings thus far. That's the reason Phoenix is one win away from their summer vacation commencing.  

Vrbata scored 35 goals this season and Whitney led the team in scoring, but they have zero combined points in this series. You cannot have your two best offensive players contribute nothing against a good team like the Kings and expect to be competitive in a seven-game series.

Tippett needs to call out his players before he calls out the referees. If the Coyotes stop worrying about getting calls and focus on finding ways to beat Kings goaltender Jonathan Quick, then they might have a chance to send this series back to Phoenix for a Game 5.

There's no need for Tippett  bash the referees when his team has been dreadful for most of this series. He's just making excuses for the poor performances of his players.

Follow @NicholasGoss35

Nicholas Goss is an NHL Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and was also the organization's on-site reporter for the 2011 Stanley Cup Final in Boston.