ation, comments on rule enfor
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. Good morning Mr. F, First, thank you for helping to educate us fans about the rules of the game, and for sharing your stories. Second, my questions: What is the NHL policy on media and officials? Can they be on Twitter? Can they be interviewed by TSN? Can they publish a book? We rarely, if ever, see an active official make a comment off the ice. Is this because they dont have much to say, or because of restrictions? I could see referee interviews causing uproars among fans. Thanks!Kent Hi Kent: The policy the NHL has in place for their officials speaking to the media is clear and direct: NO COMMENT! All media access to the officials (interviews) must be cleared and granted through the office of Gary Meagher, Sr. Vice President Public Relations & Media Services. Gary is assisted by Julie Young, Manager of Public Relations. Once the content and nature of an interview is cleared, Julie is typically responsible for contacting the official and facilitating the interview. Both individuals are extremely professional and very good at their job. It was a treat to work with Julie Young because through her efforts things always went smoothly during the many times that I was requested for interviews. Social media is off-limits for all the officials! They are not allowed to have a Facebook or Twitter account as information could easily be misconstrued or deemed to be inappropriate. It is just another undesirable location that the officials could become accessible. After NBA referee Tim Donaghy was convicted on criminal charges and served time in federal prison for betting on games he officiated, NHL officials are "strongly discouraged" from entering casinos while travelling on NHL business. You can forget about reading a book written by any NHL officials until after they retire; unless perhaps it is a childrens coloring book! Other than the number on the back of their sweater (no names since 94) the league is most content when their officials are seen and not heard from. During the playoffs a supervisor (Officiating Manager) is assigned to each series. In the event that an explanation might be required for any reason, it is conveyed to the media through the series supervisor after he consults with the officiating crew. If a major controversy were to occur in game, Gary Meagher will typically craft a press release and/or instruct the supervisor as to the information that should be shared with the media. Personally, I preferred the day when a pool reporter was allowed into the refs room after a game to get the answer directly from the official who made the decision on the ice. I would rather explain the reason behind my decision than to have it communicated through a third party or worse yet not explained at all. On occasion, pertinent aspects of my explanation became lost in the transfer and delivery of information. There are even times when the only answer is that an honest mistake was made but I doubt youll hear about it! Some officials are media savvy while others are not. I know many officials that would get torn to shreds by the media if they became accessible following a game. The only time the press would be interested to hear what an official had to say would be following some sort of controversy. It is at times such as this when damage control is utilized. Most often however, there is a reasonable explanation for a refs decision that should become public.  Players and coaches can provide post-game comments from an emotional and often biased perspective. Those are the sound bites and quotes that fans are left with even though the NHL can (and has) impose fines to players and team management when they impugn the officials publicly.   To prevent embarrassment or limit the need for damage control by the NHL, it is most obvious that a broad policy has to apply which restricts all referees or linesmen from making public comments. I am under no such gag order so the best place to get a straight answer as we move into the 2013-14 Stanley Cup playoffs is right here at Cmon Ref! Fair, honest and opinionated - the spin truly does stop here Kent! Enjoy the final weekend of the regular season and the race for the playoffs. Jordan Whitehead Jersey . Lowry and the Raptors officially announced a four-year US$48 million dollar deal Thursday. The deal was reported last week but couldnt be made official until Thursday, when the moratorium on signings was lifted. "They were real factors. I did my homework. Ryan Smith Jersey . Future Hall of Famer Ricky Ray is in his prime and back for a third season in double blue. The 34-year old was magnificent in 2013, throwing for just under 2,900 yards despite missing eight games, tossing an impressive 21 touchdowns against just two interceptions, completing 66 per cent of his passes in the process. http://www.cheapbuccaneersjerseyssale.c ... ersey-sale. The Brazilian heads into Saturday afternoons race coming off a close runner-up finish to Ryan Hunter-Reay in the Indianapolis 500. Carlton Davis Jersey .com) - Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant combined for 51 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder took down the struggling Bucks 114-101 on Tuesday. Mike Alstott Jersey .ca has you covered for whos in, whos out and what to expect from all 30 teams. England and defending champion Spain qualified for the World Cup on Tuesday night along with Russia and Bosnia-Herzegovina, which earned its first berth as an independent nation. Chile and Ecuador earned the final two automatic spots from South America and Honduras got the final guaranteed slot from the North and Central American and Caribbean region, the 21st of 32 slots for the field in Brazil next June. Less than two minutes from elimination, Mexico advanced to a playoff against Oceania when the United States scored twice in stoppage time for a 3-2 win at Panama that knocked out the hosts. Wayne Rooney scored in the 41st minute and Steven Gerrard in the 88th to give England (6-0-4) a 2-0 win over Poland at Londons Wembley Stadium and first place in Group H by one point over Ukraine (6-1-3). The Three Lions qualified for their 14th World Cup and fifth in a row. "We have a great togetherness, are there for each other and proved we can perform under pressure," Gerrard said. Spain (6-0-2) won Group I with a 2-0 victory over visiting Georgia on goals by Alvaro Negredo in the 26th minute and Juan Mata in the 61st. Iker Casillas returned to starting lineup for Spain after being replaced by Victor Valdes against Belarus last week. The Spanish, who have won three straight major tournaments, including the 2008 and 2012 European Championships, qualified for their 10th straight World Cup. "It may look practically routine, but its important to remember how successful weve been at qualifying," coach Vicente Del Bosque said. "This is not an easy competition." France (5-1-2) was second and will be in the playoffs despite defeating visiting Finland 3-0 on goals by Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema around Joona Toivios own goal. Cristiano Ronaldos Portugal, Greece, Ukraine, Romania and Iceland also finished second in their groups, winding up in Mondays draw for the eight-team European playoffs next month along with Sweden and Croatia. The four playoff winners also will earn berths. With a population of just over 300,000, Iceland would be the smallest nation to qualify for a World Cup. Trinidad and Tobago, at about 1.3 million, was at the 2006 tournament in Germany. The seedings for the playoffs will be determined by Thursdays FIFA rankings. Denmark (4-2-4) had the poorest record among the nine second-place teams and missed out on a playoff berth. Bosnia (8-1-1) won 1-0 at Lithuania on Vedad Ibisevics 68th-minute goal to win Group G on goal difference over Greece. Bosnia-Herzegovina gained independence from Yugoslavia in 1992. Almost 10,000 fans jumped, cried and screamed Vamos Bosnia -- or Go Bosnia -- when Ibisevic scored in Kaunas. Fans headed to the airport after the game to wait for their team to arrive in the middle of the night and joiin the party.dddddddddddd. Greece (8-1-1) defeated visiting Liechtenstein 2-0 as Dimitris Salpingidis scored in the seventh minute and Giorgos Karagounis added a goal in the 81st. Russia (7-2-1) won Group F with a 1-1 tie at Azerbaijan as Roman Shirokov scored in the 15th. Portugal (6-1-3) finished a point back after defeating visiting Luxembourg 3-0 on goals by Silvestre Varela, Nani and Helder Postiga. Italy, which already had clinched, tied Armenia 2-2 at Naples. Former Real Salt Lake forward Yura Movsisyan scored in the fourth minute for the visitors. Alessandro Florenzi and Mario Balotelli scored for the Azzurri, and Giueseppe Rossi entered in the 73rd minute for his first international appearance since Oct. 7, 2011. A 26-year-old forward who was born and lives in New Jersey, Rossi had been sidelined until last May by a knee injury late that October, which required three operations. After clinching last week, Germany rallied for a 5-3 win at Sweden as Andre Schuerrle had a second-half hat trick following goals by Mesut Ozil and Mario Goetze. A 2-1 win by Chile (9-6-1) over visiting Ecuador (7-5-4) earned both nations berths. Alexis Sanchez scored for Chile in the 35th minute and Gary Medel added another three minutes later, while Felipe Caicedo scored for Ecuador in the 66th. Uruguay (7-5-4) was fifth on goal difference after a 3-2 win at home over already qualified Argentina (9-2-5) and will play a home-and-home playoff against Jordan, the fifth-place team in Asia. Cristian Rodriguez and Edison Cavani scored around a Luis Suarez penalty kick for the hosts, and Maxi Rodriguez had two goals for the visitors. In CONCACAF, Honduras (4-3-3) earned the regions third berth and its second straight World Cup trip with a 2-2 tie at Jamaica on goals by Carlo Costly and Maynor Figueroa. Mexico (2-3-5), in danger of failing to reach the tournament for the first time since 1990, lost 2-1 at Costa Rica as Brian Ruiz scored in the first half and Alvaro Saborio in the second for the Ticos. Oribe Peralta scored in the 29th minute for Mexico. Panama (1-4-5) finished fifth when Graham Zusi and Aron Johannsson scored in second-half stoppage time for the U.S. (7-2-1), which like Costa Rica had clinched last month. In the African playoffs, Ghana routed Bob Bradleys Egypt national team 6-1 in the first leg of the home-and-home, total-goals series. The second leg is scheduled for Nov. 18 in Cairo. Bradley was hired by Egypt in September 2011, 15 months after Ghana beat Bradleys U.S. team 2-1 in the second round of the World Cup. The Pharaohs, ranked 50th, have not qualified for the World Cup since 1990. The 24th-ranked Black Stars have eliminated the U.S. in two straight World Cups and were knocked out by Uruguay on penalty kicks in the 2010 quarterfinals. 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