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 Ref The news says Ryan Getzlafs good fortune got the Anaheim Ducks their first win of the season. I say, the Ref blew the game. HOOKING, HOOKING. Getzlaf non-hooking call cost the Wings the game. Whats the correct call, Kerry? Hopefully the NHL will have a chat to this young ref. Thanks, Bill Ducks vs Wings, Saturday night game, with 23 seconds to go....Getzlav hooks Kronwalls hands as he has the puck in the corner. He goes down, Getzlav brings the puck out and scores the game winner. Are the wings cheated out of a sure point, maybe 2, or was that a fair non call at a critical time in the game? We can all agree, in todays NHL, that gets called in the first 2 periods 100 per cent of the time. Thanks for your analysis, Sam What would you have called on Getzlaff ? Hook or Knonwall just fell? Don Verrier Bill, Sam and Don: I reviewed Ryan Getzlafs game-winning goal at the request of Jamie Bibby, a follower of @kfraserthecall on twitter. Jamie admitted to being a Bias Red Wing fan but agreed with my analysis of the play. What, say you? I maintain, as did referee Tom Kowal, that while Ryan Getzlaf extended his stick with a one-handed reach and made contact with the lower hand of Niklas Kronwall, it was Kronwalls skate striking the dasher kick-plate that caused the Detroit defenceman to fall and turn the puck over. It was an excellent non-call by the referee! A referee must take into account the cause and effect of a play when determining whether an infraction of the rules has been committed. A stick slash, even one that appears to be somewhat forceful, often requires the evidence of a smoking gun determined through breakage, or when an opponents stick is knocked out of his hands prior to the referee applying his judgment to call a penalty. A stick placed in an opponents skates, hands or other location is not necessarily a penalty until a legitimate trip or violation actually occurs. There must be the presence of some negative consequence in determining almost all potential infractions. To the point, an illegal advantage must be gained as a direct result of some action committed by the offending player. One misnomers, propagated in large part by broadcasters, is that a stick placed in a parallel position, which makes contact with an opponents hands is generally ruled an automatic penalty by the refs. While there is a heightened awareness and focus by the referees to this potential foul, there must be some resulting consequence to the action before it becomes a penalty. As you looked at the beginning of this play you would note that Kronwall pinched at the Ducks blue line and attempted to contain Getzlaf from breaking through the neutral zone with a hook placed in the parallel position. Kronwalls stick did in fact contact Getzlafs lower hand and the Ducks captain was slightly turned but played through the restraint and continued to attack the puck. Kronwalls stick was in the parallel position, did make contact with Getzlafs hands, did cause some restraint but the resulting effect was not sufficient to warrant a penalty in the correct judgment of referees Kelly Sutherland and Kowal. The one-hand, weak extended reach by Getzlaf likewise did not turn the Detroit player or cause him to lose the puck or his footing. Kronwalls fall to the ice was directly a result of his own body position which caused his skate to hit the kick-plate almost simultaneously with the reach by Getzlaf. To penalize Getzlaf on this play would have been an overreaction. Referee Tom Kowal deserves kudos for gaining the proper sightline and applying the correct judgment on this difficult play. Happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian brethren and Columbus Day wishes to my fellow U.S. citizens. Oh, the joys of dual citizenship. Michael Strahan Youth Jersey .J. -- The New Jersey Devils are so bad in shootouts, coach Pete DeBoer doesnt mind seeing his team take chances in the five-minute overtime. Carl Banks Jersey . His head snapped back from the impact and hit the floor. The All-Star power forward was all right afterward, a relief for the Minnesota Timberwolves. http://www.giantsrookiestore.com/Giants-...onkey-Jersey/.C. -- Wake Forest coach Jim Grobe is resigning after 13 seasons at the school. Julian Love Giants Jersey .com) - Devan Dubnyk stopped all 30 shots fired his way and made several big saves down the stretch for his third shutout of the season as the Minnesota Wild beat the Calgary Flames 1-0 on Tuesday. Eli Manning Youth Jersey .com) - The collective hearts of Chicago Bulls fans sank on Friday night when Derrick Rose went down with a leg injury against the Cleveland Cavaliers.WASHINGTON -- After scoring twice in his return from a shoulder injury, Alex Ovechkin supplied the assist on Tom Wilsons first NHL goal. After the game, he stunned the 19-year-old rookie mid-interview with a red pillow smothered with blue shaving cream right in the face. "Ohhh! My eyes!" said Wilson, who doubled over and had to retreat from the locker room to the shower room to get a towel and get the sting out. Wilson returned moments later to discuss his role in the Capitals 6-2 win Tuesday night over the New York Islanders. It is hard to overshadow Ovechkin, but Wilson gave it his best shot with his first assist, first goal and first wise decision to pass up a fight against Matt Carkner, who was baiting the youngster in the games final minutes. "He kind of joked around that he was trying to get me the Gordie Howe (hat trick), but I dont think my first Goldie Howe would want to be against him -- hes a pretty tough character," said Wilson, who kept pausing between answers to put his hand to his burning eyes. Ovechkin was obviously happy for Wilson, but the three-time NHL MVP was also all smiles about his own performance. After being sidelined for two games, he scored twice on the power play in a five-goal second period for the Capitals, who have won three straight and are above .500 for the first time this season (8-7). "I felt pretty refreshed out there," said Ovechkin, who has 12 goals this season. "Of course I had a few days off, had a couple of breaks, but I feel pretty good." John Carlson, Marcus Johansson and Alexander Urbom also scored for the Capitals, who went 4 for 6 on the power play. Nicklaas Backstrom had three assists, and Braden Holtby made 34 saves.dddddddddddd John Tavares and Kyle Okposo scored for the Islanders, who had won two in a row. Evgeni Nabokov had 33 saves. "Our special teams werent very good. Our PK has to be better," Tavares said. "If we want to give those guys, 8 (Ovechkin) and 19 (Backstrom), those easy plays in front of the net, its going to make a tough night on our goaltender, and we hung him out to dry." Ovechkin was hurt last week when he crashed headfirst into the goalie and net in the first period of a loss at Vancouver. The Capitals won twice without him -- including a 7-0 rout of the Philadelphia Flyers -- and have scored 16 goals in three games. "That had a little bit of a look like last year to me," said Washington coach Adam Oates, recalling the teams late surge that put the Capitals in the playoffs. "A lot of good things." The Capitals were in control enough for Oates to give Wilson a rare appearance on the power play in the third period. Ovechkin fed Wilson in the slot with a pass that made it look as if the two had been playing together for longer than just a couple of months. "Pretty cool to have him pass me that first one," Wilson said. Even it meant his eyes would be stinging for a while. NOTES: Washington has outscored opponents 26-13 in the second period this season. ... Wilson got his first NHL point with the primary assist on Urboms goal. ... The loss opened a four-game road trip for the Islanders. ... Thomas Vanek, in his fourth game since being acquired in a trade from Buffalo, led the Islanders with seven shots. ' ' '