to win," he said. "Big for the team

Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL stories? Kerry wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca! Hey Kerry! Im wondering if you could give us some insight as to why Nazem Kadri got away with only a two for running Niklas Backstrom in Wednesdays game between the Wild and Leafs. Every replay showed an elbow to the head of Backstrom, clear as day. Is the fact that a new Ref was in the game? It seems to me that the weak call was at least partly responsible for the chippy atmosphere afterwards. Any insight would be great! Mike in St Paul, MN --- Hi Kerry, During the Toronto-Minnesota game, Nazem Kadri was given five and a game for a hit to the head. While Kadri got the game misconduct, Phil Kessel served the five-minute major penalty. How do they determine what player serves the five-minute major? Do the coaches pick a player to serve the penalty, and if so does that player have to be on the ice at the time the penalty was called? Kyle Moore Mike and Kyle: Nazem Kadri made two very irresponsible decisions with separate hits to the head of Wild goalkeeper Niklas Backstrom at 7:07 of the first period and then to Mikael Granlund at 8:41 of the third. Both of these illegal hits to the head were worthy of a five-minute match penalty! The match penalty, plus any additional penalties, shall be served by any player (excluding a goalkeeper) to be designated by the Coach through the Captain. The player designated, in this case Phil Kessel, must take his place in the penalty box immediately. Kadri got a two minute free-pass on the Backstrom hit by a rookie referee. Things happen much more quickly in the NHL than in the minor leagues. I am confident the young referee will learn from the experience he gained in his very first NHL game. We shall also see if Nazem Kadri is taught a lesson from both of these experiences? The responsibility is place squarely upon every player to avoid contact with a goalkeeper wherever possible. When contact is unavoidable through a collision the player must do everything within his power to minimize the force generated. Beyond zero attempt by Nazem Kadri to avoid contact with Niklas Backstrom he generated what appears to have been excessive force with his elbow/forearm directly to the facemask of Backstrom causing the goalie to crash the back of his head onto the ice. Following the two minute power-play the Wild enjoyed, Backstrom was forced to leave the game. There is a provision for the referee to assess a major penalty under rule 69 for goalkeeper interference as well as major and game misconduct for charging and elbowing. However, given the fact that Nazem Kadri made a decision to accelerate his elbow/forearm with force directly to the face/head (main point of contact) of Niklas Backstrom elevates the call to a match penalty under rule 48 in my judgment. I see this beyond just a player running out real estate and finding himself in an unavoidable collision with a goalkeeper. Nazem Kadri had other options and a much better decision to make; the very least of which was to plant and finish with an extended forceful elbow/forearm to the head of Niklas Backstrom. There is certainly some precedent set in the area of player contact with goalkeepers both inside and outside of the crease. Classic examples of excessive illegal contact with a goalkeeper were demonstrated when Milan Lucic ran over/body checked Ryan Miller which resulted in a concussion to the Buffalo goalkeeper; then Jordan Tootoo crashed into Miller in the blue paint in the goalies very first game back after recovering from Lucic induced "concussion like symptoms"; in a play-off game Andrew Shaw of the Blackhawks caught Mike Smith with a shoulder cap to the facemask as the goalie played the puck behind the goal. The bar of justice was raised after Milan Lucic escaped with only a minor penalty for charging and no suspension. You may recall my reaction the following day in CMon Ref where I stated that a major penalty and game misconduct plus a three-game suspension was warranted whenever a goalkeeper was run over in that fashion. Both Tootoo and Shaw were assessed a 5 minute major, game misconduct and three game suspensions. The head contact Kadri delivered on Mikael Granlund was totally unnecessary, senseless, irresponsible, wreckless, and dangerous for starters. I could apply a host of other adjectives given the one goal lead the Leafs were protecting in addition to the separation between the two players and as Nazem Kadri approached to make what should have been a legal body check through Granlunds center mass. I must repeat; whenever a player elevates his posture prior to and through a check the head of his opponent is highly susceptible to becoming the main point of contact. The results of Nazem Kadris hearing scheduled this afternoon for hitting the head of Niklas Backstrom are pending. Cheap Texans Jerseys .ca/CurlingSkins - with the Top 16 curlers earning a ticket to Banff, Alta. to compete in the TRAVELERS ALL-STAR CURLING SKINS GAME Presented by Pintys, running Jan. Lonnie Johnson Jersey . In Englands first game since its worst-ever World Cup showing, Roy Hodgsons side rarely looked like scoring against unambitious opposition and the breakthrough in the friendly only came when Raheem Sterling was tripped in the penalty area. http://www.cheaptexansjerseysauthentic.com/. Next up, the Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Cleveland Browns in the AFC North. Baltimore Ravens In 2014, the 8-8 season that the Baltimore Ravens experienced was to be expected. Cheap Texans Jerseys Authentic . "After consultation with the Team USA medical staff and officials, it was determined that he should return to Winnipeg as a precaution due to his previous injury history," Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said Wednesday in a statement. Tytus Howard Jersey . Steve has built a solid reputation throughout the years - first as a hockey player, then as an NHL general manager and now as a scout.ST. LOUIS -- Khris Davis could have easily just called it a day after striking out four times. Instead, the Milwaukee Brewers outfielder got one more chance -- and came through. Davis hit a run-scoring triple in the 12th inning to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to a 5-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday night. "It was tough," Davis said, "but there was no doubt I still wanted to be in that situation." Davis drove in Jonathan Lucroy, who doubled off Seth Maness (0-2) to start the inning. Mark Reynolds then drove in Davis with a sacrifice fly. Davis, who finished 1 for 6, struck out in the second, fifth, sixth and 10th innings. "Its hard to find the positive, after a tough start in the game," Davis said. "But you know its there. You just have to look hard to find it." Davis found it by ripping a two-strike pitch down the right-field line. Zach Duke (2-0) picked up the win with two innings of scoreless relief, and Francisco Rodriguez recorded his 12th save in as many opportunities by getting Jhonny Peralta to fly out with two on to end the game. Davis impressed his teammates with his ability to bounce back. He admitted that he, "looked real bad," in several of his early at-bats. "I know what its like, Ive been there," Reynolds said. "It says a lot for a young guy to bounce back like that. His confidence in that situation was something else." Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke agreed: "What he did, its got to pump you up." Milwaukee, which leads the majors with 19 wins, has won four of five and eight of 10 overall. The Brewers also improved to 10-1 on the road, despite being without outfielder Ryan Braun (oblique strain) and shortstop Jean Segura (bruised cheek). Both were listed as day to day. Allen Craig and Matt Holliday hit solo homers in the sixth inning off Brewers starter Yovani Gallardo to give St. Louis a 3-0 lead. Holliday, who leads the team with 16 RBIs, also drove in Matt Carpenter with a first-inning single for St. Louis, which has lost four of six. The Brewers lost 14 of 19 too St.dddddddddddd. Louis last season and dropped three of the first four before Mondays victory. "This win was huge," Roenicke said. "We got some big hits and we hung in there and battled." Reynolds was very pleased with the way the club rallied from a 3-0 deficit. "Its the sign of a good team to come back and win a game that maybe you werent supposed to win," he said. "Big for the team, big for our confidence." St. Louis starter Michael Wacha gave up three runs and eight hits over 6 1-3 innings. He struck out nine. Gallardo, who is 1-11 lifetime against St. Louis, gave up three runs and seven hits over six innings. Milwaukee tied the game with three runs in the seventh. After Lyle Overbay and Scooter Gennett had RBI singles, Aramis Ramirez was hit by a pitch from reliever Pat Neshek with the bases loaded and two outs. Ramirez left the game in the bottom of the inning with an elbow contusion. He, like Braun and Segura, is listed as day to day. Wacha, who has 19 strikeouts in last two starts, cruised through the five innings. He did not allow a runner to reach second until the sixth. "I felt good with all of my pitches and command," Wacha said. "I just let it get away from me a little in the seventh." St. Louis manager Mike Matheny was disappointed that his team gave up a comfortable lead. "Not very often do we get a three-run lead and not be able to hang onto it," he said. "Its as tough a one as weve had all year." NOTES: Former Cardinals catcher Tim McCarver, a national commentator for Fox Sports for the past 18 years, made his debut on the Cardinals broadcast Monday. McCarver is doing colour on 30 games for Fox Sports Midwest this season. ... Lance Lynn (4-1, 3.80) will face Kyle Lohse (4-1, 2.38) in the middle game of the three-game set Tuesday. ... St. Louis lost a replay challenge in the sixth inning. Gallardo was ruled safe on an infield single. The ruling on the field was confirmed in 1 minute, 52 seconds. ... Braun was in the on-deck circle when Elian Herrera struck out to end the 10th. 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