NHL Research and Development

The NHL's annual research and development camp gets underway this week in Toronto with some of Canada's top major junior players trying out new rule tweaks under Brendan Shanahan's watchful eye. Shanahan was tabbed as the NHL's Senior Vice President for Player Safety and Hockey Operations in June, replacing the outgoing and always controversial Colin Campbell.

Each year, the NHL uses the camp to test implementation of rule changes and tweaks. Some of this year's tweaks Shanahan will try out are the "Hybrid" Icing Rule, 4 on 3 and 3 on 3 Overtime, No Icing while Shorthanded, Offside adjustments, Removing the Trapezoid, and a Goaline camera.

The Hybrid Icing Rule was implemented this year by USA Hockey and yours truly played under the rule in the ACHA. The rule is seen as a compromise between no-touch icing and traditional touch icing. Opponents of touch icing have long advocated for no-touch icing citing concern for the players' safety. Each year, CBC analyst Don Cherry compiles a list of NHLers who have been injured (usually from slamming hard into the dasher) in a chase for the puck. Many in the NHL world see no-touch icing as another blow to the excitement of the sport once marketed by the NHL as the "coolest game on earth." Under the hybrid icing, the linesman determines whether icing is blown based on which player is first to the near faceoff dot. If the attacking player is first to the dot, the icing is washed out, if the defence is closer to the dot, the whistle is blown then and there. In USA Hockey, if there is a tie, icing is automatically called. Many consider this a no-brainer, including TSN. I have witnessed numerous close-calls in which one player has their stick extended to get the call, plays in which both players are tangled going into the circle and fall down anyway, and linesmen that simply miss the call. It is a judgement call and puts a great burden on the officiating crew. Hockey is an exciting and at times dangerous sport. Keep tag-up icing. If nothing else, it provides a good reason for the defence to hustle back.

I hate the shootout. Period. Many around the NHL dislike the shootout, especially for determining who wins a contest. A win in a shootout may not seem all that important in November, but come April, all those shootout wins and loses seem consequential. Four minutes of 4 on 4 play is similar to what we have now. Instead of going to a shootout, the game would open up even more after four minutes of OT with a 3 on 3 session for three minutes. This would take the pressure off the goalies, allow the skill and speed of many NHLers to shine, and avoid the shootout. Honestly, I wouldn't mind going back to ties after a 5 minute OT.

No Icing Permitted while Shorthanded. This rule would make minor penalties more serious and keep the puck in the zone longer, theoretically leading to more goals. As a goaltender, I am not a fan, but if the NHL is keen on increasing scoring, this might be one way to do it.

No line change for teams committing an offside would make players more aware of where they are and theoretically would improve the flow of the game by having fewer offsides. This rule, as TSN.com points out, may also reduce creativity by increasing the incentive to just dump the puck in and not try some tick-tack-toe passing or slick dangles. The league should watch out when trying to implement this one lest in turn into the two-line pass rule. Another similar rule is forcing a team to go all the way back to the defensive zone for a faceoff after an offside. I think the faceoff should be where the offside play originated from. Forcing the offending team to go back into their own zone will cause players to be more cautious thereby slowing down the game and reducing creativity. I happen to think dump and chase hockey with some good puck battles in the corners is exciting. I am not your average hockey fan. Ask someone watching the NHL on NBC from Tampa or Carolina what they think and they'll tell you dump and chase is as boring as soccer.

The trapezoid rule is one of the most boneheaded rules in the book. According to TSN, the NHL implemented the trapezoid to prevent goalies from playing the puck behind their net and passing it out to the defence, thereby keeping the puck in the zone longer and creating more offense. Instead, this led to slow breakouts because the defence must skate all the way back to retrieve the puck, slowing down the flow of the game. Playing the puck is a skill for a good goaltender and can make the difference between a Bobby Luongo and Marty Brodeur.

The last change the camp will examine is having an HD camera on the goaline. If the technology is there, why not give officials another view of controversial goals that is not obstructed by the crossbar?