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, So Shawn Thornton gets a slap on the wrist for the water squirting incident - a childish, unsportsmanlike and potentially dangerous act, but players can get two minutes for spraying the goalie with snow when sometimes inadvertently just trying to stop quickly? In your opinion, should the NHL ever consider taking a more serious look at such actions and add them as an infraction in the rule book? Mike Cimba Mike: The Player Safety Committee should be commended for their swift action to impose the maximum permitted fine under the CBA ($2,820.52) against Shawn Thornton for his childish, television viewer unsightly, unsportsmanlike and potentially dangerous act of water bottle squirting at PK Subban. I am quite sure an incident of this nature will never happen again given the maximum allowable supplementary discipline and public humiliation that has been imposed against Thornton (sic sarcasm intended). Now that this bug on the visor of Subban has been wiped clean and severely dealt with, perhaps the PSC, Hockey Operations and the Officiating Department can focus their attention on more important issues that have been continually exposed to this point in the playoffs? For starters Mike, additional rules dont need to written until the ones that already exist are more consistently enforced; or even just applied. If the referee determined that Subban had been legitimately interfered with by a spray from a water bottle in Thorntons hands (Heaven forbid) the ref could have applied a broad interpretation to rule 56.2: a minor penalty shall be imposed on any identifiable player on the players bench or penalty bench who, by means of his stick or his body, interferes with the movements of the puck or any opponent on the ice during the progress of the play (Thorntons hands are attached to his body). Likewise, the same rule 75 - unsportsmanlike conduct, that is applied (sometimes) against a player deemed guilty of deliberately snow-showering a goalie could also be imposed in the case of a player deliberately squirting water in the face of his opponent. With the multitude of infractions that are being let go throughout extended portions of these games I cant imagine any referee imposing a penalty for this squirt of liquid. With regard to player safety however, it appears to be a serious and unwanted element of the game. So too was diving/embellishment once upon a time. Embellishment was deemed a plague within the game and language was added to rule 64.3 that provided authority for Hockey Operations to review game videos and assess fines to players who dive or embellish a fall or a reaction, or who feign injury regardless if a penalty was called on the ice. The punishment for the first such offence during the season will result in a warning letter being sent to the player. The second such incident will result in a $1,000 fine. For the third such incident in the season, the player shall be suspended for one game, pending a telephone conversation with the Director of Hockey Operations. For subsequent violations in the same season, the players suspension shall double (i.e. first suspension - one game, second suspension - two games, third suspension - four games, etc.) When was the last time you read that a player had been fined for diving/embellishment let alone suspended? I have seen some known offenders embellish as many as three times in one game during these playoffs. Im not suggesting for a second that players should be suspended for the letter of the law that this rule empowers Hockey Operations. What I am suggesting is to focus on the real important issues beyond a squirt from a water bottle. Lets start with an acceptable and expected standard of enforcement from the referees throughout a playoff game that is more consistent with those employed during the regular season. The rulebook has not changed from the regular season but the application and standard of enforcement by most of the referees clearly has. Powerful stick slashes that broke a players stick was almost always called; as the playoffs progress they are seldom called and have even resulted in goals being scored. Obvious infractions have been let go; major infractions have been let go or deemed to be a minor penalty. The latest such example was the major boarding infraction by Brandon Bollig on Keith Ballard that was deemed to be a minor penalty by the referee on the ice. Bollig was subsequently and correctly suspended for two games by the Player Safety Committee for this dangerous hit that injured Ballard. As far as I am concerned they got in wrong by not responding in kind to the chicken-wing elbow delivered by Jared Spurgeon of the Wild to the head of Marcus Kruger. Kruger was pulling his upper body back and up after shooting the puck on goal. Spurgeon was going to miss his intended check and responded by leaving his skates and extending his elbow to initiate contact with the head of Kruger. Kruger staggered of the ice and went directly to be evaluated in the quiet of the Hawks dressing room. Spearing incidents and howdy-dos between the legs have on occasion resulted in the assessment of penalties. Sidney Crosby provided a pretty good howdy to Dominic Moore that went un-penalized and resulted in a scrum at the end of the second period in yesterdays Rangers 3-1 win over the Penguins. In an attempt to keep all things in perspective, it would appear that a squirt off the bench with a water bottle will result in the maximum allowable fine being levied by the Player Safety Committee. Perhaps just a letter to Thornton would have sufficed; all things being equal? Tug McGraw Jersey . General manager David Poile called signing Ribeiro a great opportunity to add a talented, experienced and creative centre Tuesday when he introduced the veteran at a news conference. 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Webb birdied the 18th hole to take the outright lead, then watched as Choi, who shot a course-record 62 on Saturday to take a share of the third-round lead, pushed a 10-foot putt wide of the hole at 18 to miss the chance for a playoff.ST. LOUIS -- Lance Lynn threw a five-hit shutout in his first career complete game and the St. Louis Cardinals got home runs from Allen Craig and Matt Holliday in a 6-0 victory over the New York Yankees on Tuesday night. Holliday and Matt Adams had three hits and an RBI apiece and Craig drove in two runs. The Cardinals have won 10 of 13, shaking off a 12-inning loss in the series opener, and ended the Yankees three-game road winning streak that matched their best of the year. David Phelps (1-2) pitched in his hometown for the first time and allowed three earned runs in six innings. Two infield errors contributed to two unearned runs in the Cardinals breakout four-run third. Derek Jeter got a standing ovation before each at-bat, just like in the opener. He was 0 for 3 with a walk. Adams leads the National League with 22 multi-hit games, Holliday has reached safely in all 23 home games and Craig has a team-high 15 RBIs this month. Lynn (6-2) struck out two and walked three, topping his previous career best of eight innings on April 25, 2012 at Chicago against the Cubs. He retired the side in order for the third time in the ninth inning, finishing with 126 pitches. The Yankees were shut out for just the second time, going 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position and stranding two runners twice. The Cardinals batted around in the third with Adams double the lone run-producing hit. Craig reached on a bases-loaded RBI groundoout when first baseman Kelly Johnson gloved an offline throw from Jeter but then lost the ball attempting a sweeping tag, and two runs scored on Jhonny Peraltas grounder that scooted under second baseman Brian Roberts glove.dddddddddddd Craigs fifth homer ticked off right fielder Alfonso Sorianos glove at the wall in the fifth. Holliday greeted reliever Alfredo Aceves with his third of the season leading off the seventh. The Yankees opened with a big play on defence, with centre fielder Jacoby Ellsburys running grab steps from the wall to rob leadoff man Matt Carpenter of extra bases in the first. Adams stretched to full extension keeping his foot on the bag at first on Roberts groundout to end the second. Rookie second baseman Kolten Wong made three nice plays, outrunning Ellsbury to first after fielding a grounder that Adams also chased, turning a smash by Yangervis Solarte into a double play ball in the fourth, and diving to snare Phelps foul pop-up in the fifth. NOTES: Cardinals Hall of Fame manager Whitey Herzog, recovering from a hip injury, was among those in a sellout crowd of 45,202, the teams 12th of the season. ... Hiroki Kuroda (3-3,4.55) faces Shelby Miller (6-3, 3.18) in the series finale Wednesday. Kuroda is 0-7 in his last 11 road starts since winning at Texas last July 25, the longest drought of his career. Miller is 2-2 with a 5.79 ERA in five career interleague starts. ' ' '