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, Can you clarify something for me please? On every draw taken by Jonathan Toews, Ive noticed that as soon as the first stick touches the ice (his own on the road and the opponents at home) he simultaneously turns his body and moves his left foot forward, positioning it in front of his opponents right foot immediately before the puck is dropped. This allows him to basically block out the opposing player before the puck is even dropped. How is this not considered to be encroaching (or jumping early) on the faceoff? To me, hes basically being allowed an advantage by getting a head start so to speak on the draw. Keep it up Mr. Fraser! Kyle ShermanWestlake Village, CA Kyle: I did not take your claim lightly that Jonathan Toews cheats on every faceoff, so I examined consecutive faceoffs in an objective manner that the Hawks captain was involved in during the first period of Wednesday nights game. You might be surprised to learn (which I wasnt at all) that the centres from both teams were cheating every chance they could get and as much as the linesmen allowed! There was considerable stick movement regardless of which player placed his stick on the ice first (especially from Jarret Stoll who utilizes a quick stick tap up and down to be in motion when the linesman releases the puck). So put your stick down and your skates squared up on each side of the lines Kyle because this is what transpired: 1) Opening faceoff: Toews set up with open stance to the right before the referee Marc Joannette moved into position to drop the puck. Toews won the opening faceoff cleanly over Anze Kopitar and the Hawks puck possession and attack led to Drew Doughty being called for tripping Toews. 2) As a result of the Kings penalty, Toews took the draw to the right side of Jonathan Quick. From this location, the Hawks captain wanted to draw the puck back to his left. Both Toews and Stoll line up with their feet square on each side of the markings. Toews puts his stick on the ice first but then picks it up as Stoll comes down with an effort to time the drop. The linesman puts the puck in and both centres tie up but Toews wins the puck back from the scrum. This puck possession results in a Hawk power play goal by Brent Seabrook. 3) Toews set up square for a Hawks attacking zone left side draw back. Stoll demonstrates a dramatic set to the right with his skates. Jonathan Toews wins the draw cleanly back for another Hawks attacking zone puck possession. 4) Toews lost a neutral zone faceoff as he set up square while Anze Kopitar was twisted to the right. Kopitar won the draw to the sidewall and created a Kings entry into the Hawks zone (First commercial timeout then resulted). 5) Centre ice faceoff following Jarret Stoll goal which saw both Jonathan Toews and Anze Kopitar dramatically twisted as they lined up. Both players moved to gain the benefit of a timed drop. Toews was faster and more dramatic but Kopitar won the draw back and Kings controlled. 6) With 7:10 remaining in the period and a Hawks end zone left side faceoff, Jarret Stoll places his stick on the ice first and does a stick tap up and down to gain momentum as Toews comes down and then up with his stick. Both players attempted to gain the benefit of this timed drop but Stoll was clearly twisted to his right with movement and won the draw back as the Kings controlled the puck in their attacking zone. The linesman fell to the ice and was likely fined a "six-pack." Play went end to end until Marian Gaborik scored on a terrific pass from Anze Kopitar. I think you get the picture by now Kyle. Jonathan Toews is not the only centre thats rotating his left skate in advance of the puck drop; there is cheating on both sides of the faceoff circle! What you have highlighted Kyle is the need for the linesmen to be more diligent in squaring the centres as they get set to drop the puck and not allow a player to swing or move his stick to gain the benefit of a "timed drop". Puck possession off an end zone can be a huge factor in the outcome of a game. Thank you for pointing this out! Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys . 1 Caroline Wozniacki and three-time champion Serena Williams cruised into the semifinals, while last years runner-up Vera Zvonareva succumbed to Aussie Samantha Stosur in Thursdays womens quarterfinal action at the U. Custom Carolina Hurricanes Jerseys . Yoenis Cespedes proved he can play through a hurting right heel, giving Scott Kazmir and the As a spark with a pair of RBIs that helped spoil the Minnesota Twins home opener with an 8-3 victory on Monday. http://www.hurricanessale.com/authentic-...ricanes-jersey/. He also had some help Monday night.Hibbert scored a season-high 29 points to help Indiana beat the Utah Jazz 97-86 Monday night, ending the Pacers six-game losing streak. Rod Brind Amour Jersey . On Wednesday night, they showed that stellar defence and a little small ball can get the job done too. With pinch-runner Kevin Pillar aboard after Dioner Navarro opened the bottom of the ninth with a single, Anthony Gose dropped down an excellent bunt along the first-base line.Tuscaloosa, AL (SportsNetwork.com) - Devin Booker headed a strong Kentucky shooting effort with 13 points and the No. 1 Wildcats kept on rolling with a 70-48 pasting of Alabama at Coleman Coliseum. Kentucky (17-0, SEC 4-0) dominated in all facets en route to its second straight blowout win after a pair of narrow overtime triumphs to begin SEC play. The Wildcats shot 50 percent from the floor, knocked down 8-of-17 attempts from 3-point range and finished 16-of-18 from the foul line. They controlled the glass as well, outrebounding the Crimson Tide by a 30-21 margin, while forcing 15 turnovers to deal Alabama its first home loss of the season. Booker finished 3-of-6 from beyond the arc and Tyler Ulis hit 3-of-4 from long distance in an 11-point effort. Dakari Johnson also tallied 11 points for Kentucky, which remained one of the nations two lone unbeatens along with Virginia. Alabama (12-5, 2-2), which entered Saturdays matchup 10-0 in Tuscaloosa, received 13 points from Levi Randolph and 10 out of Rodney Cooper in its second straight conference setback. Final Score: (2) Virginia 66, Boston College 51 Chestnut Hill, MA (SportsNetwork.com) - Malcolm Brogdon scored 20 points and No. 2 Virginia pulled away late against Boston College to come through with a 66-51 victory over the Eagles. The Cavaliers unblemished record was temporarily placed in jeopardy when they trailed 38-33 early in the second half. However, Virginia put together a 13-2 run and dominated the final 14 minutes to prevent the upset bid. Though Justin Anderson, the Cavs leading scorer on the season, was held without a field goal, Anthony Gill amassed 11 points and 10 rebounds to help Virginia (17-0, 5-0 ACC) to its first 5-0 start in ACC play since 1980-81. London Perrantes added eight points -- all coming in the second half -- along with six assists. Boston College (8-8, 0-4) remained winless in conference games despite Olivier Hanlans 18 points and six assists. Patrick Heckmann finished with 15 points for the Eagles. Final Score: (3) Gonzaga 72, Loyola Marymount 55 Los Angeles, CA (SportsNetwork.com) - Gary Bell Jr. paced a balanced Gonzaga attack with 17 points and the No. 3 Bulldogs posted a 72-55 victory over Loyola Marymount on Saturday. Kevin Pangos hit four 3-pointers and scored 16 points for the Bulldogs (18-1, 7-0 WCC), who notched their 11th straight victory overall and against the Lions. Byron Wesley finished with 14 points, six rebounds, five assists and four steals for a Gonzaga team that opened the game on a 14-0 run. Ayodeji Egbeyemi had 14 points to lead Loyola Marymount (5-14, 1-6), which snapped a five-game skid with a win over Portland on Thursday. Final Score: (4) Duke 63, (6) Louisville 52 Louisville, KY (SportsNetwork.com) - Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski is now only two wins away from capturing the 1,000th win of his illustrious career. Krzyzewskis squad got back on track Saturday with a 63-52 victory over the sixth-ranked Louisville Cardinals. Amile Jefferson scored 19 points on 6-of-7 shooting and pulled down seven rebounds for the fourth-ranked Blue Devils (15-2, 3-2 ACC), who avoided dropping three straight ACC games for the first time since the 2006-07 campaign. Jahlil Okafor added 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting and grabbed seven boards for Duke, which shot 48.8 percent from the field and went 17-of-23 from the foul line. Terry Rozier ended with 17 points for the Cardinalls (15-3, 3-2), who have lost two of three.dddddddddddd Montrezl Harrell tallied 10 points and 14 rebounds. Final Score: (12) Notre Dame 75, Miami-Florida 70 South Bend, IN (SportsNetwork.com) - Jerian Grant scored 23 points and handed out eight assists to help No. 12 Notre Dame shake off a slow start and top Miami, 75-70, on Saturday. The Fighting Irish (17-2, 5-1 ACC) trailed by as many as 12 in the second half but had enough time to recover and shoot their way out of their hole. V.J. Beachem added 13 points on 3-of-7 shooting from 3- point range and Pat Connaughton contributed 10 points and 11 rebounds. The Hurricanes (12-5, 2-2) were led by Sheldon McClellans 17 points and JaQuan Newton chipped in 16. Tonye Jekiri scored eight with a game-high 13 rebounds, but star Angel Rodriguez had just four points on 1-of-10 shooting. Final Score: (13) Wichita State 61, Evansville 41 Evansville, IN (SportsNetwork.com) - Darius Carter and Ron Baker scored 18 points apiece to help 13th-ranked Wichita State beat Evansville 61-41 on Saturday. Carter also grabbed 11 rebounds in the Shockers wire-to-wire win. Shaquille Morris had nine points and Fred VanVleet added seven with five rebounds as Wichita State extended a record with a 24th straight regular- season Missouri Valley Conference victory. The Shockers (16-2, 6-0 MVC) won their 12th consecutive league road game. D.J. Balentine scored 16 points but shot 6-of-17 for the Purple Aces (13-5, 3-3), who were held to 30 percent shooting. They entered the game third in the nation in shooting at 51.1 percent while leading the MVC in scoring with an average of 74.6 points. Final Score: (14) Maryland 75, Michigan State 59 College Park, MD (SportsNetwork.com) - Melo Trimble and Jake Layman each had a big first half to help No. 14 Maryland in a 75-59 win over Michigan State. Trimble scored 21 of his 24 points in the opening half, while Layman added 13 of his 23 over the first 20 minutes. Layman also pulled down a team-high 12 rebounds for the Terrapins (17-2, 5-1 Big Ten), who have won three straight. The Spartans (12-6, 3-2) had their three-game winning streak snapped, a run that started after a double overtime home loss to Maryland on Dec. 30. Branden Dawson paced Michigan State with 14 points and 10 rebounds and Matt Costello chipped in 12 points. Final Score: (17) VCU 70, Duquesne 64 Pittsburgh, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - JeQuan Lewis had 16 points and five assists as No. 17 VCU held off Duquesne, 70-64. Melvin Johnson gave 14 points and Doug Brooks added 10 for the Rams (15-3, 5-0 A-10), who have won 10 straight since a loss to Virginia on Dec. 6. Derrick Colter had 14 points and five rebounds, Dominique McKoy added 12 points and six rebounds and L.G. Gill had 11 points and seven boards for the Dukes (6-10, 1-4), who have lost their past three. Final Score: Kansas State 63, (22) Baylor 61 Manhattan, KS (SportsNetwork.com) - Nino Williams posted 18 points and seven rebounds, as Kansas State edged No. 22 Baylor thanks to a second-half surge, 63-61, at Bramlage Coliseum. Marcus Foster added 11 points for the Wildcats (11-7, 4-1 Big 12), winners of four straight games thanks to shooting 50 percent (23-of-46) from the field. Kenny Chery poured in a game-high 21 points -- but his runner as time expired failed to fall -- and Taurean Price added 20 for the Bears (13-4, 2-3), who have dropped three of their last five. 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