I remember watching him in the preseason; he was supposed to be a "sandpaper" type player but pretty much every single time he touched someone the ref's arm went up. On the flip side of that coin, he would get obliterated on a dirty hit or at least an obvious penalty, he'd look up at the ref while sprawled on the ice and the ref would just skate away, probably smirking.
Plotnikov would have an expression on his face of total bewilderment, like "I barely touch someone -- penalty. I get nearly murdered -- no call?" He had no way of knowing that's just how refereeing goes in 98% of Penguin games. He was one sad and confused puppy, having played hockey for several years but never seeing bias like that.
