slapped 49ers left tackle

SANTA CLARA, Calif. Air Force 1 Replica . -- Jim Harbaugh offered a parting shot at Packers linebacker Clay Matthews: Slapping is not the tough-guy way. Harbaugh said Monday that Matthews threw one punch and slapped 49ers left tackle Joe Staley when they tussled following Matthews late hit on quarterback Colin Kaepernick in the second quarter of San Franciscos 34-28 season-opening win against Green Bay on Sunday. "If youre going to go to the face, come with some knuckles, not an open slap," Harbaugh said. "I think if that young man works very hard on being a tough guy, hell have some repairing to do to his image after the slap." Matthews promised leading up to the game that Green Bay would target Kaepernick after he ran for a quarterback-record 181 yards to beat the Packers in the playoffs eight months ago, and Matthews did just that. On the play, he threw his right arm around the lower part of Kaepernicks neck. "Like I said last week, usually a man will tell you his bad intentions if you just listen. That certainly was a cheap shot, launching, clotheslining to the neck-head area," Harbaugh said. "Bad play." While Matthews was flagged for a late hit, Staley received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that Harbaugh didnt think was right. Staley immediately came to Kaepernicks defence on the play. The penalties were offset and the 49ers scored on the next play, which officials later said should have been fourth down rather than a repeated third down. The NFL said Monday that a review showed Staley should not have been penalized. "After reviewing the play, Vice-President of Officiating Dean Blandino determined that Joe Staley should not have been penalized," spokesman Randall Liu said in an email. "It should have been first-and-goal for the 49ers from the Green Bay 3-yard line." "Thats what I saw," Harbaugh said. Harbaugh praised referee Bill Leavy and his crew, and said San Francisco would have gone for it on fourth down anyway. "First of all, it never should have been offsetting penalties, in my opinion," Harbaugh said. "All in all, theres a lot of things going on in that stretch. The other one was the entire Packers bench cleared, practice squad players, coaches. Members of the Green Bay Packers are all out of their bench area down along the goal line. There was no repercussion for that as well." Packers coach Mike McCarthy said in Green Bay, Wis., that hes not looking to get into a back and forth with Harbaugh. "Clay Matthews is not a dirty player, by no means," McCarthy said. "So I addressed Harbaughs comments in the team meeting, and as always, well stay above it." While Staley said after the game he needs to control his emotions, he insists he will defend his quarterback in a case like that. Harbaugh said its rather simple when coaching a situation like that. "When guys are going at each other after the whistle, and looking to push and shove people, just lock up, protect yourself," he said. "Not going to back down from it, were not going to get pushed all around after the whistle when its not being called, when the first offence is not being called. "You have to have a plan. For us, its not to go pushing and throwing punches, its to lock up and protect yourself. And Joe did that about as well as you could do it. If you call somebody for that then youre going to have 30 flags, 30 times. Thats happening all the time in our league after the whistle." Also Sunday, Harbaugh had to change his game-day attire at halftime from Reebok to Nike. He said he could be subject to a fine. "That was a mistake, grabbed the wrong one," Harbaugh said. "It was an honest mistake, there was no malice intended. It wont happen again." Air Force 1 Discount . And follow TSN.ca right through Wednesdays 3pm et trade deadline for all the updates. Blue line help for Red Wings? In addition to what he reported in Insider Trading, TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun wrote on ESPN. Air Force 1 On Sale . - Defensive end-linebacker Mike Neal apparently is returning to the Packers.The Los Angeles Kings hope to lock up their second Stanley Cup title in three seasons Wednesday, when they try to complete a sweep of the New York Rangers at Madison Square Garden. Listen to the game on TSN Radio and watch live streaming of the post-game news conferences on TSN.ca and TSN GO. The Kings own a 3-0 lead heading into Game 4 of the best-of-seven Stanley Cup Finals. Los Angeles won the first two tilts of this series on home ice, posting comeback victories to win Games 1 and 2 beyond regulation before grabbing Mondays Game 3 meeting in New York by a 3-0 score. L.A., which beat New Jersey in six games for the franchises first Cup victory in 2012, can become the first NHL team to win the Stanley Cup Finals in a sweep since Detroit claimed four straight against Washington in 1998. However, the Kings also held a 3-0 lead over the Devils in 2012 but then dropped two straight before clinching the title on home ice in Game 6. The Rangers, meanwhile, will try to stave off elimination in Game 4 and send the series back to L.A. for a fifth meeting on Friday. New York is still shooting for its first win in the Stanley Cup Finals since 1994, when it beat Vancouver in seven games for its first title since 1940. The first Cup Finals game at Madison Square Garden in 20 years didnt go the way the Rangers planned, as the Kings used a strong performance by Jonathan Quick to deliver a 3-0 win and push New York to the brink of elimination. Quick made 32 saves to record his second shutout of the 2014 postseason and ninth of his playoff career. Jeff Carter, Jake Muzzin and Mike Richards all scored for the Kings, who needed overtime in Game 1 and double-overtime in Game 2 to win their two games at home. They got a late goal in the first period in Game 3, however, then scored twice more in the second to back Quicks stellar effort. "It was a playoff hockey game. We were trying to win a hockey game," said Quick. "We did a lot of things the right way. We were able to do that. Now we get ready for the next one. The fourth one is always the most difficult." The Rangers were playing their first home game in the Cup Finals since a Game 7 win against Vancouver on June 14, 1994. New York was hoping a familiar setting would get them in the win column, but that was not the case. The Rangers were unable to solve Quick, though, and Henrik Lundqvist was victimized for all three goals on just 15 shots. "He was obviously the best player on the ice tonight," said New York head coacch Alain Vigneault about Quick. Air Force 1 Cheap. "Give them credit, though, because they found a way to put the puck past a real good goaltender and we couldnt do it." If New York is to win this series, it will have to do something only four other teams have done in NHL playoff history -- win four straight games after falling in a 3-0 hole. One of those clubs is the Kings, who rallied from a 3-0 deficit to beat the San Jose Sharks in the first round of this years playoffs. The only time a team erased a 3-0 deficit to win the Cup was in 1942 when Toronto defeated Detroit. Shortly after killing off a New York penalty and with time winding down in the first period, the Kings skated down the other way. Justin Williams gained the zone through the middle, slipping over to the right before sending a short pass back to his left. Carter took the feed and snapped a shot from the top of the right circle that hit off the tip of the left skate blade of a diving Dan Girardi and in off the glove of Lundqvist with just 0.8 seconds left. It was the first time the Kings had a lead in a game since the third period of Game 6 of the Western Conference finals, a span of 249:14. "Well, I know there wasnt a lot of shots on net," said Lundqvist about the goal. "But we felt we played a real good period, the pace was good, there wasnt a lot of room, both teams were battling real hard for ice. That was their only chance in the first period. We out-chanced them 4-1. We had some real good looks. Stuff like that happens." Muzzin made it 2-0 L.A. less than five minutes into the second stanza when his shot from the point hit off Rangers forward Martin St. Louis before beating Lundqvist, who was screened in front by Carter. Richards then completed the scoring with 2:46 left in the second period. Los Angeles forward Anze Kopitar had an assist in the game and has 21 helpers in the postseason. His 26 points leads all skaters in the postseason, while Carter and Williams are tied for second with 24 each. Williams has recorded a point in five straight games, and has two goals and seven assists over that span. If the Rangers are to make a series of this, they will likely need forward Rick Nash to contribute on offense. Nash has yet to register a point in this series despite totaling 15 shots on net in the first three games. Nash, who led New York with 26 goals during the regular season, has had a disappointing playoffs overall, recording just 10 points (3G, 7A) in 23 contests. ' ' '