Hartmann and Thibault are two of the most intriguing

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, As always, I really enjoy your take on some of the questionable plays/calls/non-calls. I thought I would try and lighten it up a little with a request for you to share a truly funny or odd moment that you may have had while the players were lining up at the dot. There have been a couple of brief interchanges recently that made me think of this, the latest being at about 12:23 of the first in the Hawks/Kings game on Monday. With all the games you have done, there must be a few. Care to share any? Thanks again, Bajuhn Hey Bujuhn, The camera often catches intense debates between players or coaches and the officials but misses the lighter, humorous side that helps to bring the temperature down and build healthy professional working relationships. I learned early in my career that the use of humor, when appropriate (especially self-deprecating), had its place on the ice. Early in my very first season as a referee, I had a game where the home team was getting soundly trounced and their frustration was continuously being directed at me. I responded with multiple misconduct penalties and, toward the end of the game, players were sitting three deep in the penalty box. Following another goal that took the score in double digits, the coach sent his captain over to have a word with me. Very politely the captain asked, "Mr. Referee, my coach wants to know if he can get a penalty for thinking?" I said, "Probably not if he doesnt think out loud." The captain then said, "In that case, my coach thinks you are a F-ing A-hole!" I not only found the coaches comment to be creative but very funny and I began to laugh. The stern look on the face of the coach changed to a grin and then he began to laugh as well. The humor we shared in that moment, albeit at my expense, broke the ice and taught me a valuable lesson that would serve me throughout my career. In the early 1980s, I was the first referee to wear a wireless microphone during a game at MSG between the Minnesota North Stars and the Rangers. The microphone was left open throughout the entire game so it brought the television audience directly to the action on the ice with uncensored comments. We had several dust-ups throughout the game where my mic caught all the pleasantries that were being exchanged between players. Willi Plett tried to club Don Maloney of the Rangers in once such scrum and caught me on the bridge of my nose with his glove. After Plett served his penalty, he approached me at a stoppage of play and asked, "Is this your worst game of the season?" I shot back with a smile, "No, theyre all about this caliber." Plett looked dumbfounded and shook his head while skating away. At times, I tried to council rookie officials not to take themselves so seriously in an effort to solicit player cooperation and earn respect. In 1988, my friend and colleague, linesman Pierre Champoux signed an NHL contract. Pierre quickly developed into an excellent linesman but in the beginning of his career, he did not have a very good command of the English language to put it mildly. We left training camp together that September and headed out West to work exhibition games and to work on Pierres English language skills. One of our early assignments was in Los Angeles and the rookie linesman wanted to establish his full control in the faceoff circle. Bernie Nicholls entered Pierres domain late in the first period to take the draw. In what Nicholls correctly perceived as an aggressive tone and animated gesture, the linesman commanded Nichols with, "You, put your stick down!" Bernie straightened up, cussed at Champoux by questioning who the "F" the rookie thought he was talking to? Nicholls was immediately ejected from the faceoff with a quick jerk of the linesmans thumb followed by, "You, out!" I skated over and told Nicholls to relax as a replacement entered the faceoff circle. Between periods, I conveyed the importance of quickly developing a good working relationship with all the players to gain respect and solicit their cooperation. I acted out a role-play to demonstrate the linesmans command to Nicholls that wasnt well received; followed by a polite approach I always used by requesting the centres to "please put your sticks down." It was obvious to Pierre which method would be better received by a player in the future. I finished by commenting if Pierre still received a hostile comment from a player following his polite request to follow with a lighter approach by saying, "Why are you so grumpy, did someone piss on your cornflakes this morning?" Pierre said I like dat and he couldnt wait to get on the ice to try his new techniques in the faceoff circle; especially the cornflakes line as it turned out. As the centres arrived for the faceoff, Pierre still had a bit of an edge to his tone when he commanded, "You, put your stick down please." Getting some resistance from the player, my rookie student responded immediately with, "Put your stick down or I will piss on your corn-flake!" Something got lost in the translation. Champoux quickly developed a command of the English language and continues to be recognized by the players as a highly respected linesman in the NHL. Pierre also enjoys his bowl of cornflakes in the morning with low-fat milk. Bo Takahashi Jersey . - The Denver Broncos kept rookie wide receiver Tavarres King from joining the Green Bay Packers by promoting him to their active roster Tuesday. Brad Ziegler Jersey . The Red Wings hadnt played the night before. The Boston Bruins had. A month from now, or two months from now, it doesnt matter. But right now it does matter, when you start and you play back to back, its wear and tear on you for sure, Babcock said. https://www.cheapdiamondbacksjerseys.us/258l-eduardo-escobar-jersey-diamondbacks.html . On paper, it looks a little like Andre the Giant taking on a midget wrestler. It has all the makings of a rout with the Americans adding an eighth win in nine outings of this biennial event. The Yanks have eight players in the top 15 in the world while the Internationals have just one. Rod Barajas Jersey .J. -- Pitcher Carl Pavano is retiring after 14 major league seasons. Craig Counsell Jersey . The Raptors two leading scorers were never able to co-exist the way they hoped or the team had envisioned, but individually DeRozan was thriving, in the midst of a career season.With the 2014 CFL Draft set to take place Tuesday in Toronto, CFL on TSN analyst Duane Forde breaks down the top prospects. Today, he looks at defensive backs. 1. Antoine Pruneau (Montreal) You Should Know: He has been an RSEQ All-Star each of the last three seasons...at a different position each year.The Good: He combines a high football IQ with excellent speed and quickness.The Bad: Hell need to improve his overall strength to battle receivers at the next level. 2. Andrew Lue (Queens) The Good: He is a four-year starter and three-time OUA All-Star at the boundary corner position.The Bad: He has always played on an island at corner and, therefore could take time to adjust to being in the middle of the field if needed at safety. 3. Raye Hartmann (St. Francis Xavier) The Good: A bigger DB at 62", 190 lbs., he is as competitive and physical as any player in the class.The Bad: Having left school after his second year, he hasnt played football since the 2011 season. 4. Adam Thibault (Laval) The Good: He is one of the most explosive athletes in the draft class and posted the fastest 40-yard dash (4.45 seconds) and 20-yard shuttle (4.03) of anyone at the CFL Combine, as well as topping the DB group with 18 bench press reps.The Bad: Despite trying multiple positions on both sides of the ball, he could never establish himself as a full-time starter for the Rouge et Or, and didnt participate in one-on-ones at the CFL Combine. 5. Derek Jones (Simon Fraser) The Good: The son of former Edmonton Eskimo DB Ed Jones was a four-year starter at SFU and, at 4.51 seconds, had the 3rd fastest 40-yard dash at the CFL Combine.The Bad: He had some trouble in man coverage at the CFL Combine. Other Contenders:• Eric Black (Saint Marys) – 511", 170 lbs.; brother of Toronto Argonaut DB Matt Black; 2013 AUS All-Star cornerback; strength is a concern, as he posted only 3 bench press reps at the CFL Combine• Josh Burns (Windsor) – 60", 180 lbs.; was #14 prospect in the September Canadian Scouting Bureau rankings; a collapsed lung in Week 2 limited him to four games; tested well at Toronto Regional Combine, including a 4.57 forty, which ranks 4th among draft eligible DBs• Charlton Elliott (St. Francis Xavier) – 60", 185 lbs.; played in 2013 East West Bowl; ankle injury cost him most of the 2013 season; tested well at Montreal Regional Combine but could improve on 4.76 forty• Matt Webster (Queens) – 511", 185 lbs.; played just four games in 2013 due to injury but still had 2 INT; as a safety, led the nations 2nd ranked rushing defence in tackles in 2011; 4.59 forty at Toronto Regional Combine• Steve Ventresca (McMaster) – 60", 180 lbs.; not a great tester (5 bench press reps, 4.97 forty at 2013 East West Bowl) but this four-year starter has 14 career intercepttions Also on the Radar (alphabetically): Alexandre Branco (Sherbrooke); R.ddddddddddddJ. Cornish (Saint Marys); Allan Dicks (McMaster); Demetrius Ferguson (St. Francis Xavier); Zach Lord (McGill); Mattey Ossom (McGill); Hugo Rajotte (St. Francis Xavier); Randy Williams (Ottawa) Analysis: Historically, defensive backs havent heard their names called frequently in the early portion of the CFL Draft. In fact, over the last thirty years, only two DBs (Patrick Burke in 1993 and Dylan Barker in 2008) have been selected first overall and youd have to go back to 1996 (Kelly Wiltshire and Andrew Henry) to even find the last time two defensive backs were chosen in the first round. Its largely a product of the relationship between supply and demand, as every CIS team has five starting defensive backs but CFL teams rarely start more than one non-import in the secondary. Nonetheless, with draftees like Craig Butler and Mike Edem and, to a lesser extent, Courtney Stephen and Keenan MacDougall, having a relatively immediate impact in the CFL, teams are recognizing that the learning curve for young Canadians might not be quite as steep as in years past. This will be a very important consideration in 2014 because, for as much as has been said about the new draft eligibility rules hurting the depth of this "transition year" class, the group of DB prospects is as good and as deep as any Ive seen. Athletic, cerebral, and versatile, Pruneau fits the mold of the "new" non-import safety cast by Butler and Edem. He is right alongside Manitoba running back Anthony Coombs, in a 1a/1b relationship, as the best non-linemen in the class. He is a virtual lock to be taken in the first round, potentially in the Top 5. Lue doesnt quite possess the vast résumé of Pruneau but his size, coverage skills, and intellect are why several teams covet his services. He has an outside chance of making it two DBs in Round 1. Hartmann and Thibault are two of the most intriguing prospects in the draft. Hartmann left St. FX after two years and, in the 24 months since then, many rumours have circulated as to the reason why. Whether it was finances, academics, or the pursuit of an NCAA opportunity is irrelevant now. He demonstrated through the Toronto Regional and main CFL Combine that he hasnt lost a thing. At the very least, he has the tenacity and athleticism to contribute right away on special teams, while making up for that lost development time as a DB. Thibault is also trying to close that learning gap, having only moved from receiver to defensive back in 2013. Athletically, hes an elite prospect but, if his potential couldnt be maximized at the CIS level in a program with the environment that Laval provides, there have to be concerns that it wont happen in the CFL either. Nonetheless, hes a rare specimen who is worthy of a long look. ' ' '