NHL Rule Changes
Posted on August 30, 2005 at 10:35 AM EST
Hockey season begins in another five weeks and it can’t get here soon enough. It’s the only sport that I regularly watch on TV and I’ve really been missing it the past year. There are several new rules that have been adopted by the NHL in the upcoming 2005-2006 season. Some of them will help increase the speed of play, making the game more exciting, and some will take away aspects of the game that I like.
Here are some videos provided by the National Hockey League and EA Sports that describe the new rules:
What I Like
Four feet will be added to each of the zones between the goal and blue lines. This extra room will help give the players more space to skate around in their offensive zones, which will speed up the action and give them more scoring chances, especially during power-plays.
To allow more continuous play, there’s a new Tag-Up rule, which allows a player to dump a puck into an offensive zone if his teammate is already in the zone as long as he returns to the blue line before touching the puck. The red (center) line will be ignored when making passes so a player can pass the puck from his defensive zone all the way up to their offensive blue line which previously would have been stopped due to a Two-Line Pass. Players can make much longer passes now which should increase the number of breakaways thus creating more chances for a one-on-one against the goalie.
In the event of a tie at the end of a game after five minutes of overtime, there will be a shootout as opposed to the game ending in a tie. Each team will be able to select three players and the team with the most goals after the six shots will be the winner. If the score remains tied after the six shots, the shootout will proceed to sudden death.
What I Don’t Like
One thing that I am really frustrated about is the Instigator Rule. One of my favorite things about watching hockey are the fights. Every couple of years or so a rule is changed to try and decrease the amount of fighting. One of the biggest things that draws a large number of people to hockey are the fights. Why the NHL keeps trying to remove it from the game is beyond me. If things keep up the way they’ve been going, NHL hockey will be a non-contact sport in another 15 years. It was fun to watch a game where a team was getting their ass kicked then to see the other team come out throwing punches in the last few minutes. This new rule is a bit harsh and will probably put an end to any fighting at the end of a game whatsoever. If a player instigates a fight in the final five minutes of a game, he will receive a game misconduct and an automatic one-game suspension and the length of the suspension will double after each additional incident. On top of that, the player’s coach will be fined $10,000 which will also double after each incident.
There is a new zone that has been added to the ice called the Goaltender Trap Zone. It’s a 28’ area behind the goal that is shaped like a trapezoid. Goaltenders who play the puck outside of this zone behind the goal line (in the corners) will now be penalized for delay of game, resulting in a two-minute penalty. I think goalies should have freedom to go wherever they want on the ice, especially within a few feet of the net that they have to protect.
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Tagged with hockey, nhl, sports
Way to Go Red Sox!
Posted on October 20, 2004 at 11:56 PM EST
I am by no means a baseball fan, but I figured since hockey season has been cancelled this year and I’m really missing watching sports, that I’d watch the Red Sox game tonight. I thought it would be a great game since they tied up the ALCS series after being down 3-0 to the Yankees.
After David Ortiz hit a grand slam, which was the second one in Red Sox post-season history, it brought the score of the game to 6-0. It seemed like they were definitely going to win until they pulled their pitcher in the 7th inning. The new pitcher, allowed two runs after three people had batted and things weren’t looking too good. They decided to pull him after the one inning and ended up winning 10-3.
This game set several post-season records; it was the greatest comeback in baseball history (where a team has won the series after a 3-0 deficit), it was the worst game a team had ever lost (after losing four straight games), and it was the first time the Red Sox had beaten the Yankees in a series.
I’m looking forward to watching the World Series and hope the Red Sox keep up their lucky streak. They’re definitely due for a win since they haven’t won the World Series since 1918.
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