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LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Kobe Bryant returned to the Los Angeles Lakers lineup against Miami on Tuesday night after his latest prolonged stretch of rest.The Lakers are working on a plan to keep their 36-year-old superstar healthy for the rest of a rough season, but theyre not entirely sure how to do it. Scott intends to decide before every game whether to use Bryant that night, but Kobe likely wont play in back-to-back games again this season.Its uncharted waters for both of us, Scott said.Bryant had skipped three of the Lakers last four games to rest, and he missed three games last month, sitting out six of the Lakers last 11 games overall. Scott plans to rest Bryant again Friday when the Lakers visit Utah, but hopes Bryant will play against the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday — all subject to change, of course.Im not going to anticipate anything, Scott said. This is a day-by-day, game-by-game situation.Although Bryant is the NBAs sixth-leading scorer with 23.0 points per game, the accumulated wear of his 19th NBA season has prompted Scott to rest him with increasing frequency. Bryant has been surprised by the overall soreness in his body, gradually realizing the effects of the accumulated wear on a player who regularly suited up with innumerable injuries ranging from jammed fingers to sprained ankles.Scott thinks Bryants famed toughness and his desire to wring more wins out of another bad season compromised his long-term plans for Bryant. Kobe is averaging 34.8 minutes per game, a number thats higher than Scott intended when the season began.I was maybe playing him a little too much, Scott said.Bryant is in the first year of a two-year, $48.5 million contract extension signed last season while he was injured. Bryant played just six games in the previous 18 months before this season began after struggling with two major leg injuries.Its a two-year deal, and we want to make sure he can play it out to the best of his ability and to the highest ideal, Scott said.Scott claims the Lakers havent discussed shutting down Bryant for the season, but the coach acknowledged during the pregame shoot-around that such a discussion might occur in the future.For now, Scott will stick to a strict limit of 32 minutes for Bryant.But what if a game goes to overtime?He wont play overtime, Scott said.Bryant is the third-leading scorer in NBA history, a five-time champion and by far the Lakers biggest draw. Fans spend thousands of dollars on tickets with the express interest in seeing Bryant before his career ends — and while Scott is aware of his responsibility to fans, he feels a bigger responsibility to Bryant, his former teammate during Kobes rookie season.Its been a great experience to know him a little more, Scott said. Im getting to know him on a different level. Thats been the fun part. The toughest part of coaching him at this point in his career, you wish you had him six or seven years earlier, when this wasnt an issue. Authentic NHL Jerseys . The lightning strike was in the parking lot of Crew Stadium on Saturday night, but its not known if the off-duty lieutenant was struck directly, Columbus Fire Department Battalion Chief Tracy Smith said. The firefighter, identified as Lt. Wholesale NHL Jerseys . 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He admitted that he took things for granted before the World Cup in South Africa, when he arrived considered the worlds top goalkeeper.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 watching the Montreal-Buffalo game last night and there was a nasty hit by Canadiens winger Jiri Sekac on Sabres defenceman Nikita Zadorov. The broadcasters say Zadorov got caught right between the numbers and were expecting about five and a game. But the officials called two minutes for boarding. Was this the right call? Alex Jones, Toronto Alex: The right call was made based on the actions of Nikita Zadorov, who was the recipient of a boarding infraction committed by Jiri Sekac of Montreal. The call made by young referee T.J. Luxmore is clearly spelled out in rule 41.1 - Boarding: There is an enormous amount of judgment involved in the application of this rule by the Referees. The onus is on the player applying the check to ensure his opponent is not in a defenceless position and if so, he must avoid or minimize contact. However, in determining whether such contact could have been avoided, the circumstances of the check, including whether the opponent put himself in a vulnerable position immediately prior to or simultaneously with the check or whether the check was unavoidable can be considered. This balance must be considered by the Referees when applying this rule. It boggles my mind and defies traditional hockey logic when players turn and face the boards squarely; especially knowing that they are going to be hit. Nikita Zadorov was in the process of doing everything correct when he was first man on the puck. Zadorov attacked the puck from an angle (versus straight on) and took a good look over his shoulder some twenty feet from the end boards to observe Jiri Sekac fighting through minimal detainment offered by Zemgus Girgensons. As such, he had to expect an impending hit to be delivered by Sekac. At the goal line Zadorov rotated his body square to the boards and initiated a side-slide stopping motion as he focused on the puck that was rolling around from the corner toward the end boards. This setup placed Zadorov in perfect position to play the puck and then safely take body contact from Sekac; also with the knowledge that he had 2nd man puck support from Sabres teammate Girgensons. This relatively safe play immediately turned bad for Zadorov when he took a second peek at Sekac as the Montreal attacker approached the goal line with speed. Zadorovs momentary shift in focus resulted in an inability to play the puck in front of his body that was still positioned squarely to the end boards. Once the puck slid past his center line Zadorov placed himself in a vulnerable position by reaching back for the puck; thereby turning his body and face square to the boards just prior to receiving body contact by Sekac. Referee T.J. Luxmore was in absolutely perfect position in the corner to observe Zadorovs turn toward the boards immediately prior to the check. Luxmore then correctly applied a shared onus of responsibility between Zadorov and Sekac to only assess a minor penalty on the play. A Lesson Shared From Old Schooll Wisdom On Tuesday, the Edmonton Oilers were in town to play the Philadelphia Flyers.dddddddddddd The night before the game my wife and I took our good friend, Oilers assistant coach Craig Ramsay out for dinner. Andrew Ference had been suspended for three games just that morning; preceded by suspensions imposed by the Player Safety Committee to Anton Vochenkov (four games) and Alex Burrows (three games). I asked Rammer his take on players that not only deliver dangerous hits but those that put themselves in vulnerable positions to be hit? Based on Nikita Zadorovs turn toward the boards, I want to focus our attention on Craigs response to the later part of my query as to why players put themselves in vulnerable positions and dont protect themselves the way players of his era did. He contends that many of todays players just dont expect to be hit and as such are quite often oblivious to their surroundings. This lack of apparent environmental awareness that Ramsay contends, was definitely present when Alex Emelin was caught off guard with a very late, angled head pick by Burrows well after the Montreal defenceman had delivered a pass up ice. It could be easily argued that both Zack Kassian and Michael Ferland demonstrated a lack of awareness and need for self-protection when they were recipients of an illegal check to the head; an awareness that players from other eras understood the need for at an early age and stage in their hockey careers. At a recent Oilers practice, Rammer attempted to impart some old school wisdom on a young Oiler player; wisdom the coach had acquired in the area of self preservation during a lengthy and distinguished NHL playing career. With the baby Oiler standing squarely in front of him, Rammer raised his stick and thumped the player on his helmet. The player instinctively recoiled and backed away, prompting the coach to reinforce his intended lesson that the player really didnt like being struck with a stick! Next, Ramsay called over assistant coach Rocky Thompson who Rammer says in a very intelligent and thoughtful assistant that is a real pleasure to work with. Rocky played most of his career in the AHL. In 25 NHL games he registered no points but 117 penalty minutes! As Rocky got within striking distance, Rammer raised his stick and feigned a swat at Thompsons head. Rocky immediately pulled away and assumed a defensive posture covering his head. Rammer then turned back toward the young Oiler and said, See that, Rockys a tough guy and he pulled back at the thought of confronting my stick! The lesson ended with Rammer not promoting his player thump opponents over the head but instead to be ever aware of the potential to be checked; to be dialed in to his environment at all times; and when necessary to protect himself through reasonable defensive posture and tactics. Hopefully the dramatic lesson attempt from Rammer just might prevent the young Oiler player from being caught off-guard and suffering an injury. The dinner and company was great but we missed seeing Rammers better half, wife Susan who remained in Edmonton. I willingly picked up the tab. ' ' '