Pirate Galaxy » oyful as the Sky were after that game, realist

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, I have a question on a video I watched not too long ago and thought maybe you can give some clarification and or give us some stories like always. So the video I saw was NYR vs BOS, during a timeout CNBC had a mic near NYR bench. Obviously Torts was unhappy (as always) and you can see him yelling at an official. However during the video you can clearly hear the official tell Torts "thats enough" then proceeded to swear at the coach. My question is, are the officials allowed to swear at the coaches? I was always under the impression that referees were supposed to be held at a higher standard than every other person on the ice. Seems odd that a ref would go as far as swearing at a coach who is already clearly heated in that type of situation. I understand the fact that everyone has their boiling points, and this official was getting tired of hearing Torts yelling at him. However isnt is the refs job to try and defuse situations rather than add fuel to the fire? Thanks again, love the articles Kory C ------ Kerry, There is a video circulating of a linesman yelling "Eff you" at John Tortorella. Judging by public image of the Rangers coach, he probably deserved it. On several occasions, you can read lips of the officials and phrases like "shut the eff up" seem to be pretty common. Im sure some guys do it more than others but Im wondering how common and accepted it really is for officials to swear at players and coaches? Thank you, Eugene Kory and Eugene, It is inappropriate for a referee or linesman to curse at a coach or player at any time! In the heat of the battle (and as emotions escalate), it is imperative that officials fight the human instinct to engage their perceived adversary. Instead, their objective should always be to defuse the situation by becoming part of the solution instead of part of the problem! The best way to do that is for the official to remain in control of his own emotions. That being said, have I ever slipped up and cursed at a player or coach? Absolutely! After all, there are times when we just cant fight off our human instincts. I must say, I learned very early in my career that to defuse hostile situations, I needed to remain as emotionally neutral as humanly possible. I also recognized that to be successful, I needed to develop positive relationships with players and coaches through appropriate forms of communication. From a state of calm, I attempted to exert control by creating a "win-win" situation wherever possible. I recognized that every player and coach had distinct and unique personalities and it was my job to figure out what worked best in dealing with them. Body language and tone of voice are two elements that need to be kept in check as an official enters a debate/confrontation. The first time I came to understand there was a better way in dealing with an out-of-control coach was when Bryan Murray was behind the Washington Capitals bench in the early 1980s. Bryan is an emotional guy and, at the time, led the league in bench penalties for his theatrics in protest of the officials decisions. During one game in the Cap Center, the coach was standing up on the dasher boards screaming wildly and waving his arms at me. I decided to try a different approach, since bench penalties didnt seem to be altering Bryans unacceptable behavior pattern. I approached Murray with both of my hands up in front of me with palms open (a sign of peace as opposed to a finger point) and my monotone voice only loud enough so that I could be heard as opposed to screaming back at the out-of-control coach. I took control of the situation by stating to the coach that I would like to talk with him but in order for me to do so, he must calm down and to please get off the dasher boards. Bryan immediately complied to my polite request as his emotional pitch conformed more toward the one that I had presented to him. At this point, I started the conversation by saying, "You might not agree with what I have to tell you but let me explain the reason for my decision on the play." I quickly and calmly communicated with the coach what I saw on the play. Murray listened intently and then paused for a brief moment as he chose his words to respond. Bryan said, "Well youre right about one thing, Kerry, I dont agree with what you just said but thanks for coming over and explaining it to me!" In Bryans post-game interviews, he said the dialogue that he and I had was the first time that a referee ever approached him at the bench to provide an explanation and he really appreciated it. That incident taught me a huge lesson in relationship building. I also found that it was important for me to think of what I was going to say and actually hear myself before opening my mouth. When my emotions would start to rise and my voice got louder, I would take a breath in an attempt to return to centre or neutral. I can recall stopping in mid-sentence during a heated debate with a player and saying, "Im sorry I just said that; let me rephrase, what I meant to say was..." I learned the hard way it was much better to adopt the philosophy as a referee to "treat disrespect with respect" than to engage in or attempt to win an "Eff you" contest. I attempted to set acceptable and achievable limits for game participants similar to those I set for myself. Lastly, I tried not to take myself too seriously and to find humor in situations wherever possible. I learned that valuable quality early in my career as well when a team was getting their butts kicked at home and became extremely frustrated; especially with me. My response at the time, to their disrespect, was to assess misconduct penalties and as the score mounted near the end of the game, I had four players from the home team in the penalty box with 10s! The coach had enough of me as well and wanted to get thrown out of the game. He sent his captain over to me at the stoppage who very politely relayed a message for me. The captain said, "My coach wants to know if he can get a penalty for thinking?" Somewhat confused by the question, I responded by saying, "I guess not as long as he doesnt think out loud!" The captain then said, "In that case, he wanted me to tell you he thinks youre an Effing A#$%^&*!" I started to laugh, finding the humor in the statement. The coach, who was waiting for a battle response from me that never came, started to grin and then laugh as well. The game ended without further incident and a positive relationship blossomed with the coach. Sometimes you just have to find the humor in the situation, Torts! Air Max Australia Free Shipping . - The Washington Redskins have cut defensive lineman Adam Carriker and punter Sav Rocca. Womens Air Max Australia . Now tied for second in the league in shootout goals, the 24-year-old likes to see what the opposing goaltender has in store before he ultimately lands on a move. http://www.shopairmaxaustralia.com/ . "Trying to breathe," he said with a grin. Bernier stopped 42 of 43 shots on Monday night, including all 22 in a hectic middle frame, his heroic performance propelling the Leafs toward an undue point in their final game before the Christmas break. Wholesale Air Max Australia . Miikka Kiprusoff had just announced his retirement after a decade-long run in Calgary and it would be up to Berra and Ramo to fill the void. Air Max 90 Australia .C. -- Rodney Hood connected from all over the court while freshman Jabari Parker was busy swatting shots and scoring in transition. Minnesota and Los Angeles , the top two teams in the WNBA during the regular season, have looked every bit the best in the league during the WNBA semifinals. Both have 2-0 leads. Now its up to Phoenix and Chicago, with some help with their home crowds, to try to extend their respective series.Thats going to be tough, because the Lynx and Sparks really have not left the door open for that to happen. The Mercury and Sky are going to have to force it open by taking the series leaders out of their comfort zones.Sunday on ESPN, Chicago hosts Los Angeles (3 p.m. ET) and Phoenix hosts Minnesota (5 p.m, ET). The Lynx and the Sparks for the most part have done exactly what they wanted to do offensively; Minnesota won its two games by an average of 14.0 points, Los Angeles by 17.5.Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve wasnt thrilled with her teams defense in Fridays 96-86 victory, so that will be her biggest focus. Of course, she expects the Mercury will be more energized by playing in Phoenix on Sunday.But the defending champion Lynx are so good about not getting rattled, even by the sure-to-be-vocal Phoenix fans. For the Mercury, its do-or-die time in a season where theyve had multiple peaks and valleys. They have to avoid foul trouble, and theyll need a much bigger presence from center Brittney Griner than she had in the first two gamess.ddddddddddddA week ago Sunday, Chicago knocked off visiting Atlanta in a second-round single-elimination game at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. As joyful as the Sky were after that game, realistically they knew theyd have their hands full in this series with the Sparks.That would be the case even if 2015 MVP Elena Delle Donne were healthy for Chicago. With her out with a thumb injury, the Sky really have to play at an extraordinarily high level defensively to try to keep the Sparks from running away from them.The Sparks post players stole the show in the opening game, a 95-75 victory. In the second game, which Los Angeles won 99-84, the Sparks bombarded the Sky both from inside and outside the paint.Los Angeles is trying to make the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2003.Im coaching a lot of mature players, and theyre pros. So not much needs to be said, Sparks coach Brian Agler said when asked if theres any different approach he takes since its a potential series-clincher. We just talk about what we think were going to see and prepare for that. And just understand that theyre going to be playing with a tremendous sense of urgency. And were going to have to play that same way. ' ' '