Deflecting Palm

[MuggyWuggy]

Game 4...wtf I want to see that!

[particle]

A L2 at my lgs just ruled last night that the deflecting Palm will resolve first killing the opponent BEFORE the caster takes lethal instead of causing a draw

but the if makes it a replacement effect. all dmg is simultaneous during regular combat damage step. how could the {deflecting palm} do damage before the damage its preventing happens?

[Gorzo]

Remillo had it correct before, when he corrected me. Your judge made the same mistake that I did. But deflecting palm does NOT make a delayed trigger. Here's Rem's correct ruling for reference.

As a point of correction, Deflecting Palm does not create a delayed trigger, since that implies something totally different.  Triggers always have the words 'When', 'Whenever' or 'At' at the beginning of them.  What Palm does, however, is set up a replacement effect that will simply apply the next time the stated event happen and replaces that event. 
The way this works in combat with ties, to answer one of the OP's questions:
Both players are at 5 life.
Player A attacks with two 5/5 creatures.
Player B, with no creatures, doesn't block, but casts Deflecting Palm and chooses one of the 5/5s
Damage happens, as modified by Palm, causing a 5/5 to hit Player B, the damage from the other 5/5 being prevented, and Deflecting Palm to deal 5 damage to player A.  This ALL happens before State-based Actions are checked.
Both players are at 0 life, and both players lose due to state-based actions.

[Kaylesh]

Tx for the clear ruling Gorzo. I figured the judge was wrong, but had no ruling to back itup

[LinkCelestrial]

Bump for reference.