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[CalicoDave]

Hopefully these rulechanges will help. Shootouts are good, but did they get rid of the 4 man OT? (By far, one of the dumbest rules ever).

They still have the 5-minute 4 on 4 overtime and if there's a tie after the 5 minutes they go to the shootout.

I actually like the 4 on 4 overtime. It really opens up the ice and allows the fast and skilled players to actually contribute as opposed to in the regular 5 on 5 where all you need is one good player and a bunch of goons to hold onto the other teams players (aka: The Tampa Bay Lightning offense)

 

[IronWolf]

They still have the 5-minute 4 on 4 overtime and if there's a tie after the 5 minutes they go to the shootout.

I actually like the 4 on 4 overtime. It really opens up the ice and allows the fast and skilled players to actually contribute as opposed to in the regular 5 on 5 where all you need is one good player and a bunch of goons to hold onto the other teams players (aka: The Tampa Bay Lightning offense)

Yeah, I like the 4 on 4 overtime too. Like you said it really opens up the ice and helps cut down on the older days of 5 on 5 just clutching and grabbing to keep the pace slow. I think it builds some of the excitement to the overtime.

 

[spatha]

If I said what I think about the new rules here I'd be banned. The language would be colourfull to say the least.

The game is not broken the rules are fine as they are. They need to be enforced.
The teams and structure of the NHL is what "broke" the NHL. With then CBA team parity should arrive, making the game better. Leave the rules alone for at least 2 years to see how a more balance league looks on ice.

 

[devilbat]

The NHL 1893 to 2004 R.I.P. Cause of Death? Stupidity/Greed take your pick on who was stupider/greedier: the players or the owners. Whichever you choose, you're right.

Yeah, yeah, keep on moving.

The game is not broken the rules are fine as they are. They need to be enforced.
The teams and structure of the NHL is what "broke" the NHL. With then CBA team parity should arrive, making the game better. Leave the rules alone for at least 2 years to see how a more balance league looks on ice.

In essence, I agree with you. Hockey was great in the eighties, when the rules were called as written. Today's refeering does not remotely resemble how the game is supposed to be called.

The one rule change that really gets me is the limited area behind the net where the goaltender can play the puck. Goaltenders have gone from the fat, out of shape athlete of yester year (with whom I resemble), to the fit, uber athlete of today. Hence their skills in all areas of their games have developed. Why goaltenders should be penalized for being able to make a lead pass, or clear the puck from the defensive zone is ludacris. That's like saying Yao Ming shouldn't be able to slam, because he has a hight advantage.

I can live with the rest of the changes. I actually like the shootout for regular season games. NEVER, EVER in the playoffs though.

 

[devilbat]

The owners in Chicago systematicly have destroyed the hockey fandom here in this city. Now we can look forward to another year of not being able to watch a Blackhawk's home game on TV because the owners are afraid it might cost them ticket sales. Instead, it has cost them fans, and few in Chicago are able to follow their own local team, so they stopped trying.

I really feel for the fans of the Blackhawks. Hirtz has systematically destroyed the franchise with his beyond penny pinching means. Bringing in Theuron Fleury a couple of years ago seemed to be the nail in the coffin. I was really hoping that if the Cunucks didn't get Crosby, then the Blackhawks would. That would have been great for Chicago, and the NHL. Thankfully the team has a bunch of really talented prospects coming up the pipe.

Penguins fans don't deserve Crosby. The way they have abandoned that franchise is sad. Although, we often hear rumors of the Penguins relocating, and if that were to happen, I know there would be a group in Winnipeg, trying to get a team back. Crosby with a Jets uniform on would be a pretty amazing thing, even if it is unlikely to ever happen.

 

[Templeton580]

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[devilbat]

No it isn't. It's like saying that defensive hockey, the trap defense, and goalies wearing tower shields while they buzz all over their zone, have made a mockery of a great sport.

Nothing wrong with defensive hockey, the trap wouldn't work as well if the referee's would call the clutching and grabbing, and goalies equipment should be regulated.

None of which has anything to do with my point of goalies being able to handle and play the puck. But thanks for the input.

 

[IamTheTest]

My stance on goalies (which is widely hated) is that the goalie should be able to do whatever he wants. The caveat is that if the goalie leaves the crease he can be hit like any other player could be. A big slow target could be fun.

 

[devilbat]

My stance on goalies (which is widely hated) is that the goalie should be able to do whatever he wants. The caveat is that if the goalie leaves the crease he can be hit like any other player could be. A big slow target could be fun.

I agree with that, with the same rules for hitting from behind, charging and boarding that already exisit. If you wander, your fair game.

 

[LazerPointer]

My stance on goalies (which is widely hated) is that the goalie should be able to do whatever he wants. The caveat is that if the goalie leaves the crease he can be hit like any other player could be. A big slow target could be fun.

exactly! let them play the puck, but if they're on the boards they can't shield the puck with thier body.

I can't wait for the upcoming season, and for Bertuzzi to be reinstated.

Hockey is the only pro sport that gets a rule-change bug every couple of years. The image they project: that the game is broken and needs fixing. stupid. You know what the best thing for the league would be? NO MORE GARY BETTMAN. He's run the league into the ground, and the sooner he's gone the better. He's belligerent in interviews, and has led the league to expand into markets that can't support franchises. Effing weasel.

Go Canucks! and my sympathies for Chicago, and that stupid tv blackout.