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, I was wondering what influence, if any, the home team fans can have on the on-ice officials? If a referee misses or blows a call, but its not missed by the other 18,000 refs in the arena and lets the referee know about it by booing and such, does that impact any future calls or how the game is further officiated? Does the name calling and heckling by the fans get under your skin or just fall on deaf ears? Always looking forward to your column, Stephen Lee Stephen, In theory the objective of every sports official is to remain focused and in the moment, regardless of mistakes that have been made. Dwelling on a missed/wrong call or to be intimidated by the fallout from players, coaches and of course, the fans is a recipe for a ref to compromise his integrity and/or commit further errors. It is best to keep all mental thoughts in perpetual motion to allow your brain to function in the moment. A missed opportunity is one youll never get back. A makeup call diminishes any credibility and respect that every official works so hard to achieve. In practice however, we must recognize that refs arent mechanical robots but human beings with feelings, emotions and individualized character traits. These traits are developed over a lifetime but especially during the early formative years. Positive and negative elements of an individuals personal makeup and self-worth are brought into the arena every game and will often dictate how an official responds in stressful situations. One of the most basic human instincts is a desire to be loved; okay maybe way over the top here but how about a need to be liked, appreciated and accepted? If we can agree on that premise then, now place yourself as a referee in front of 20,000 out-of-control hockey fans chanting in unison "Ref, You SUCK," throwing debris at you and threatening your personal safety. How would that make you feel? More importantly, how would you respond? Would you have the courage and personal strength to stand tall in the face of adversity or would you give in to the pressure and alter your judgment in their favor? The flip side is, if you possessed a combative nature, stubbornness and/or arrogance as dominant traits, you just might stick it to someone! What Im really saying here is that the response and action taken by an official when hes pushed to the wall results from his unique internal makeup. All referees will rely on their strengths (skating, judgment, positioning, communication skills etc.) but I found it was most important to recognize my personal deficiencies and keep them in check. I never lacked courage but I recognized very early in my career that positive trait could quickly erode to a stubborn Ill show you attitude that was very counterproductive once my authority was challenged. I have observed a potential infraction and, as the information was being sifted through my brain, the crowd reaction beat my switch to pull the trigger, giving the impression that the crowd made the call. We have all witnessed situations (or been involved in them) when the ref has been jolted to a better sense of awareness as a result of the crowd reaction. Whenever the ref raises his arm, the call should be scrutinized based on its merit and not through the reaction time it took for the referee to make it. I saw old-school referee Wally Harris (excellent ref and great guy) call an infraction that happened behind his back when he caught the reflection of the play in the glass. It was a legitimate infraction but unorthodox in Wallys detection method. Nothing ever phased Wally. A game was held up for over 20 minutes in the Boston Garden to clear debris from the ice that was thrown at this courageous ref. While I experience many emotionally charged moments from fan vitriol, allow me to share one unusual incident. It resulted from ejecting Blackhawks coach Orval Tessier from a game in the Chicago Stadium just prior to him being terminated and replaced by Bob Pulford Feb. 4, 1984. Tessier was feeling intense pressure with speculation of his imminent termination. His players were still smarting from the coachs public suggestion they required heart transplants from the Mayo Clinic. The comment backfired and their ongoing play reflected a seeming lack of interest. When Mt. Orval erupted to incur the game ejection, Hawk fans (21,000 strong) started throwing everything that wasnt nailed down. I was their intended target and the ice became a sea of debris. A chair even flew over the glass from the high-priced seats. I took safe refuge underneath the big clock above centre ice. Coach Tessier walked across the ice to make his way to the Hawks dressing room and slipped as he kicked at a popcorn box in his path. My mouth was dry as sawdust and the blood felt like it had drained from my entire body, causing numbness in my extremities as shock and awe rained down from the rafters in the Madhouse on Madison. My emotions were raw. I felt vulnerable and alone as Hawk fans did their very best to inflict some form of retribution against me. Moral support then came to me from the most unusual of places. Captain Doug Wilson and alternate captain Bob Murray skated up to me. I was expecting additional protests to be lodged against me by the two captains. Instead, they thanked me for ejecting their coach and expressed a wish that I had done so earlier in the game! I thank them sincerely for the support they provided but suggested they should move away since the three of us made a bigger target and I feared for their personal safety. When the fans had nothing left to throw, the rink attendants filled wheelbarrows with the trash and the game resumed without further incident. Buoyed in part with the support I had received from the Hawks captains, in addition to my personal character traits, I weathered the storm. I did not allow the fans to dictate what I called moving forward in that game. After all, they had nothing left to throw at me! Irving Fryar Patriots Jersey . - Jesse Shynkaruk scored a hat trick as the Moose Jaw Warriors snapped a seven-game losing streak with an 8-2 win over the Prince Albert Raiders in Western Hockey League action on Saturday. Steve Grogan Youth Jersey . This weeks topics include his take on the Kevin Pillar incident, All-Star snubs, the firing of Padres general manager Josh Byrnes and more. https://www.patriotssportsgoods.com/Womens-Kevin-Faulk-Inverted-Jersey/ . The Islanders own the fifth pick in the 2014 draft but had until June 1 to decide whether to keep it or defer to 2015. The selection was packaged in the teams deal for Thomas Vanek on October 27, 2013. Tom Brady Youth Jersey . The Boston Celtics hadnt played since the All-Star break. So the Suns 100-94 victory over Boston Wednesday night was an uphill affair, with Phoenix relying on balance rather than its trademark high energy. Stephon Gilmore Womens Jersey . Beckham finished 2 for 4, adding a double in the first inning. Chicago has won eight of 12 to get back to .500 (27-27). The White Sox are 6-3 against Cleveland this season after losing 17 of 19 to their American League Central rival in 2013. Mike Aviles went 1 for 2 with a walk and drove in Clevelands run.Raleigh, NC (SportsNetwork.com) - Kevin Shattenkirk scored the winner in the shootout to lead the St. Louis Blues in a 3-2 win over the Carolina Hurricanes. Shattenkirk was the second shooter for the Blues and he buried a wrister past Cam Ward, while Jake Allen stopped Eric Staals wrister for the win. Allen made 26 saves, while David Backes and Ryan Reaves scored in regulation for the Blues, who have won four straight. Justin Faulk and Ryan Murphy lit the lamp for the Hurricanes, who had a three- game winning streak snapped. Ward stopped the 29 shots he faced through overtime in relief of Anton Khudobin, who was pulled from the start after allowing two goals on three shots. The Blues needed just 1:48 to get on the board as Steve Ott sent a pass from the left boards to the circle where Reaves beat Khudobin with a wrister for his fifth of the year. Less than two minutes later, St.dddddddddddd Louis made it a 2-0 game when Alex Pietrangelo passed the puck from the right corner back to the circle and Backes one-timed it in. That spelled the end for Khudobin, with Ward taking over in net. The Hurricanes made it a 2-1 game at 10:57 of the opening frame, as Faulks wrister from the high slot tipped off a Blue and found its way to the back of the net. Skating on the power play in the second period, Murphys one-timer from the high slot went through a screen and in for his first of the season at 14:19. Game Notes St. Louis plays in Washington on Sunday afternoon ... Carolina plays in New York against the Rangers on Saturday ... The Hurricanes scored on their only power play, while the Blues were held off the board on their lone man advantage. ' ' '