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MINNEAPOLIS -- Kevin Love landed hard on his hip after a foul late in the game. 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. The win over the languishing Los Angeles Lakers was nice, too. Love had 31 points and 17 rebounds to lead the Timberwolves to 109-99 victory on Tuesday that spoiled Steve Nashs return and stuck the Lakers with their seventh straight defeat. "I just want to continue to keep playing and give this team all that I can," Love said. "Yeah, Ive taken a physical beating, but youve got to expect being one of the top guys that theyre going to come at you." Kevin Martin helped the Timberwolves get off to a fast start, scoring 14 of his season-high-tying 32 points in the opening 10 minutes as the NBAs highest-scoring first-quarter team surged to a 25-point lead midway through the second period. They stumbled some after halftime, letting the Lakers pull within seven points early in the fourth quarter. "Its just one of those things where the game isnt going to be as easy as you think," coach Rick Adelman said. "You just have to persevere." With Nikola Pekovic likely out through the All-Star break, the Wolves started a difficult week, a theme of Adelmans pregame message. They play at Oklahoma City on Wednesday and New Orleans on Friday before hosting Portland on Saturday, a crucial stretch for a team running out of time to climb back into the playoff picture. But Love picked up the Wolves and carried them to an important win, playing the part of the burly Pekovic by throwing his body at the basket as often as he could. He made it to the line for 18 free throws, making 13. "We realize how good he is. He has incredible toughness," Martin said, adding: "He gets dirty down there. Thats why we pay him the big bucks and thats why hes an All-Star starter, to do things like that." Nash had been sidelined since Nov. 10 because of nerve problems in his back. The soon-to-be-40-year-old two-time league MVP had seven points and nine assists in 25 minutes, about 10 more than he was supposed to play. "I feel a bit selfish in that we lost but it felt great just to play in the NBA again," Nash said, smiling. "Obviously the game didnt go as we hoped, but for me personally thats pretty cool to be back out there." Coach Mike DAntoni was pleased. "I thought he competed, and weve got to have everybody compete that way," DAntoni said. Steve Blake also returned, coming back from a torn ligament in his right elbow that had shelved him since Dec. 10. He ruptured his eardrum during the game but kept playing on another night of bad luck and bad defence for the fallen franchise. Blake was scoreless in 31 minutes and took only two shots. Fittingly, as soon as two guys came back, two more went out. Jodie Meeks (sprained right ankle, first quarter) and backup Jordan Hill (headache and neck strain, first quarter) were hurt for the Lakers, who have been without star Kobe Bryant for most of the season. Pau Gasol also sat out with a strained right groin and could be out until after the All-Star break. DAntoni said Meeks wont play the rest of the road trip at Cleveland on Wednesday or at Philadelphia on Friday. Hill was walking stiffly in the locker room after the game but was held out as a precaution, the coach said. "I just feel for those guys. I just was in their position," Blake said. "Unfortunately its a part of the game, and the rest of us have to pick it up." The Lakers reserves had a whopping 70 points, with Nick Young (24 points), Manny Harris (17 points) and former Timberwolves first-round draft pick Wes Johnson (15 points and nine rebounds) leading the way. But the Lakers still lost for the 19th time in their last 22 games and fell into a tie for last place in the Western Conference with Utah and Sacramento. This was also their first loss at Target Center in almost seven years, ending an 11-game run. NOTES: This was the league-high seventh time this season that Love had at least 30 points and 15 rebounds. He has 25 for his career, one more than Kevin Garnett on the franchises career list. ... The Lakers have allowed 100-plus points in 15 straight games, their longest such streak since 17 in a row during the 1986-87 season. Swell Flasche Rosa . After losing a shutout bid in the dying seconds of Sundays win over the Colorado Avalanche, Luongo would not be denied against the punchless Oilers and is now just one back of Patrick Roy for 14th on the all-time list. Hydro Flask Schweiz . Appearing on TSN 1050 on Tuesday, Sean McAdam of Comcast SportsNet New England reported that the Blue Jays, along with a number of other playoff contenders were in the mix for the Boston ace. http://www.swellflascheschweiz.ch/hydro-...er-schweiz.html. Best has been bothered by concussion problems and hasnt played since Oct. 16, when the Lions lost to San Francisco. After starting 5-0, Detroit has lost four of six, beginning with that game against the 49ers. Swell Flasche Kaufen . Jamies number grades given are out of five, with five being the best mark. Henrik Lundqvist, New York Rangers (5) - Simply put, Lundqvist was brilliant. Swell Trinkflasche . The club announced on Wednesday that Malhotra signed a 25-game professional tryout contract. The 33-year-old suffered a serious eye injury when struck by a puck during a game versus Colorado in March of 2011.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, Undoubtedly you will receive a lot of emails regarding this game. I have a question regarding the position of the linesman on the missed offside call that led to the Avs tying the game late in the third period against the Wild on Friday. Why is the linesman positioned outside the blue line? Shouldnt he be inside the line so that his body or skates arent inadvertently the cause of an offside for the attacking team? If he were in position inside the line, he surely wouldnt have to lean away from the line as he does in the photograph all over the media. I would like to know your thoughts. Thanks. DJ Waldron DJ, I want to establish first and foremost that Pierre Racicot is universally accepted as one of the top linesman in the NHL. Racicots high level of skill and competency has been recognized with seven consecutive selections to work the Stanley Cup Final. I worked many games with Pierre and can tell you firsthand that he has earned much deserved respect from players and coaches throughout the League. No matter how good a player or official is, mistakes are sometimes made. The great officials minimize their mistakes and Racicot clearly falls into that category. This is one of the very few times that this linesman got the call wrong. Let me explain why that happened. As you point out DJ, linesman Racicots initial decision to set up outside the blue line created an obstructed view of the inside edge of the line once Nathan MacKinnon carried the puck a mere couple of feet in front of the linesman. From this less than perfect position, and with Paul Stastny in full stride and about to cross the line to the right of MacKinnon, Racicot made the quick, but unfortunate, decision to alter his upper body posture away from the line. This move, made in a millisecond of time, was initiated by the linesman in an effort to gain an angle that might allow him to see both the puck and Stastny crossing the inside edge of the blue line. What this new angle created for the linesman, however, was a sightline toward the middle of the ice that became obstructed by the body of MacKinnon. Offside resulted in the blink of an eye as Stastnys lead skate (and with his back skate in the air not in contact with the line or outside the attacking zone) crossed inches ahead of the puck and resultedd in a rare missed call by Racicot.dddddddddddd I had the opportunity to work with some incredibly talented linesmen during the course of my career; Pierre Racicot included. As I was writing this column I spoke with HHOF member and former colleague Ray Scapinello to provide us with some technical insight on a play of this nature. Scamp said that he learned from fellow Hall-of-Fame members John DAmico and Matt Pavelich that, as a rule of thumb, it was imperative for the linesman to be set inside the blue line prior to players and the puck crossing the line. Im sure it might have happened through unavoidable circumstance but I cant ever remember Scapinello making a decision on an off-side from the neutral zone. On the contrary, I have vivid memories of Scamp positioned inside the zone, down on one knee and looking along the inside edge of the blue line to render his accurate decision on a close call. Once the play was deemed on-side, the little fellow jumped up and quickly moved his skates outside the blue line to avoid being hit with the puck and preventing it from exiting the zone. Ray stressed the importance of the linesmen seeing the attack develop, moving quickly to set up inside the blue line and waiting to make the call as the puck and players cross the line. Scamp said this, especially with the red line no longer in play for the off-side pass rule and the linesmen must be dialed in for potential stretch passes. When set up inside the blue line, Ray said it didnt matter if all five attacking players crossed the line at the same time because his view would not be obstructed. The rare missed offside call by Racicot was an anomaly for this highly skilled professional linesman. He will learn from this experience and gain an unobstructed sightline from a position inside the blue line whenever possible. If, in the future, there is a need to alter his upper body posture/sightline along the line, my guess is Pierre will lean toward the inside edge instead of away from it. This play not only demonstrates the speed of the game but also that human error can and will occur, no matter good the player or official is. This play aside, the NHL Officiating Department could certainly use Hockey Hall of Fame legendary linesman Ray Scapinello to lead and coach the current crop of NHL linesmen, no matter how proficient they might be. Scamp learned from the very best in his day; the present group of linesman should be afforded the same privilege. ' ' '