on the ice" will be called.) Both linesmen from zgr123's blog
TORONTO – It was late March and the Maple Leafs captain was just about out of gas. Ryan Anderson Youth Jersey . Torontos season had spiraled out of control with eight straight regulation losses and Dion Phaneuf was feeling the effects of some of the most difficult minutes any NHL defender had played that season. "Id be lying to say that it did not wear you down," said Phaneuf, in jovial spirits at the start of training camp this week. "When youre playing those big minutes, by the time Game 70 comes around, you might be feeling it a little more." One of the more interesting subplots to the coming season will be the 29-year-old and his usage with the club under returning head coach, Randy Carlyle. No defender in the league played against more difficult competition than Phaneuf last season – according to the advanced statistics website, Behind the Net – and only one defender, teammate and now former defence partner Carl Gunnarsson, started fewer shifts in the offensive zone (38.8 per cent). Phaneuf struggled under the weight of that burden, posting poor possession numbers and the worst offensive output (on a per-game basis) of his Leafs career, just 31 points in 80 games. He was noticeably worn down as winter turned to spring; that subtlety never more apparent than on Mar. 25 when he made three glaring errors in a 5-3 defeat against St. Louis, too heated afterward to speak with the media. "The bottom line is that I had to be better," Phaneuf said. "I take full responsibility for that. Whether its worn down or too many minutes early, thats excuses; the bottom line is, I didnt play well enough in the last 20 games. I was disappointed in that." Lacking other trusted options, Carlyle leaned hardest on Phaneuf in the most challenging of situations – many of which started in the defensive zone opposite the games top stars. That treatment was markedly more difficult than how Phaneuf was employed under the previous head coach, Ron Wilson. Under Wilson, Phaneufs quality of competition was not nearly as high, his defensive zone starts hovering close to 50 per cent. So what can or will the Leafs do to ensure that their top defenceman isnt worn down by the stretch drive this season? Adding more experience was designed to help. Offseason additions Stephane Robidas and Roman Polak could stand to absorb some of the more challenging competition and defensive zone starts from Phaneuf. That would free him up to play more in the offensive zone while also not grinding him to the ground with shift after shift against the oppositions best. "I think it will help me personally but I think it will help our whole defensive core," Phaneuf said of the two offseason additions, both coming from the West. "Theyre guys that can eat minutes. And I think that benefits everyone." Growth from Jake Gardiner and Morgan Rielly would also aid in that process. Phaneuf, who will move back to his natural left side, projects to play with one of Robidas or Polak at the start of the regular season, intent on using the exhibition schedule to develop some familiarity with whomever it might be. That may be difficult in the case of Robidas – the better fit based on past experience and skill-set – who may not be ready to play until the final days of the preseason (knee), if at all before the regular season kicks off on Oct. 8. Phaneuf was pushing an average of 25 minutes per night through January last season; that number cut some in the second half. There were nights, nonetheless, when the ice-time mushroomed, like Mar. 1 when he logged nearly 31 minutes against Montreal. Optimal ice-time for Phaneuf, he believes, lies in the range of 23-24 minutes nightly, but that simplifies how different the quality of ice (more challenging) he logs is from that of his teammates. His minutes were actually slightly more difficult (by the numbers, at least) from those played by Shea Weber, Zdeno Chara, and Ryan Suter. Phaneuf is not Weber, Chara or Suter and putting him in situations even more difficult than a trio of that caliber is not putting him in the best possible position to succeed. Carlyle – who was unavailable for comment Friday – can lighten the load on his captain (all the more important as Phaneuf digs deeper into a seven-year deal). Will he do so? "My job is to go out and play when Im tapped to go and play," Phaneuf said. "Whatever my role is, Im going to play it to the best of my ability. Theres no easy minutes if thats your question. I think when youre playing shutdown minutes and youre shutting down the other teams top lines, theyre challenging minutes and its about managing them and getting the most out of yourself to help your team win games." Samaje Perine Redskins Jersey . Fielder ended 4-for-5 with a solo homer, while Avila was 4-for-4 with two runs scored for the Tigers, who put the brakes on a three-game skid and rebounded from a loss in Mondays opener. Victor Martinez and Austin Jackson both contributed two hits, an RBI and a run scored as Detroit maintained its healthy lead atop the AL Central. Jonathan Allen Redskins Jersey . If Vettel wins at Suzuka on Sunday, and his nearest rival Fernando Alonso finishes worse than eighth, the German driver will join his compatriot Michael Schumacher and Argentine Juan-Manuel Fangio as the only men to win four consecutive titles.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. Hi Kerry, In the final minute of the third period last night, it looked like the Kings may have had too many men on the ice during a line change - but there was no call. It was pretty close to overtime, so it might have made a huge difference in the outcome of the game. Did you see it? - Andrew R., Thornhill, ON Hi Andrew: Yes I did see the uncalled Kings too many men on the ice infraction with 21 seconds remaining in regulation time. Although there was no mention of the Kings violation of Rule 74 on either the NBC or CBC broadcasts you and I werent the only ones that caught it Andrew, as I received a tweet from Greg Williams (one of my followers on Twitter) questioning the play as well. For those that didnt observe it, let me share exactly what transpired. This too many men on the ice infraction committed by the Kings was as much of an "automatic call" as the one made a minute and three seconds earlier on Brian Boyle of the Rangers when he was penalized for a slash that broke the stick of Dwight King. There was great end-to-end action and scoring opportunities for both teams with under a minute to play in regulation time that were only thwarted through superb saves by Jonathan Quick on Carl Hagelin and Henrik Lunqvist on a Jeff Carter wraparound. After some sustained pressure by the Kings following the Carter scoring opportunity, the puck exited the Rangers zone and beyond the centre red line off the skate of Hagelin. As Alec Martinez went back to retrieve the puck on the penalty box side of the ice, Drew Doughty sauntered toward the Kings bench on the opposite side of the ice for a change following another energized shift by the potential Conn Smythe Trophy winner. With 22.7 seconds on the clock both Doughty and his replacement, Slava Voynov, were physically on the ice within fivve feet of the bench in what would determined as a legal line change as Martinez gained control of the puck midway between the red line and the Kings blue line. Ryan Anderson Womens Jersey. Two tenths of a second later (22.5) Martinez looked to his right and toward Voynov to throw a cross-ice pass. Voynov received the puck on his stick approximately 20 feet from his players bench at 20.9 seconds on the clock and with both of Doughtys skates clearly on the ice and preparing to climb over the boards. If we freeze frame it in this moment a clear violation of Rule 74.1 was committed requiring an immediate whistle and a bench minor assessed to the LA Kings for too many men on the ice. (Rule 74.1—If in the course of making a substitution, either the player entering the game or the player retiring from the ice surface plays the puck with his stick, skates or hands or who checks or makes any physical contact with an opposing player while either the player entering the game or the retiring player is actually on the ice, then the infraction of "too many men on the ice" will be called.) Both linesmen appeared to have had unobstructed views from their respective positions to follow the line change, up to and including the point when Voynov played the puck while Doughty was still physically on the ice. Even though this is primarily a linesmans call to make, one of the referees was positioned near the Kings bench inside the blue line and might very well have had a sightline on the change at the bench. This "automatic" call was not made and Voynov carried the puck through the neutral zone and led the attack. We cant be certain if a penalty call on this play would have changed the outcome of the game Andrew. What we can be certain of is that if a penalty had been called the teams would have played four-on-four until Brian Boyles penalty expired 24 seconds into overtime - at which point the Rangers would have enjoyed the benefit of a power-play for one minute and sixteen seconds. 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The Wall