NHL to look at goalie equipment... AGAIN!

[NYR1982 0]

http://msn.foxsports.com/nhl/story/8173852...oalie-equipment

Is the lack of scoring depicted in this article really the result of goalie equipment? IMO I think Bettman's departure is long overdue. Thoughts?

[RadioGaGa 162]

The League is making more money than they have in a long time....Bettman is not going anywhere.

[Allsmokenopancake 0]

There is a good article in this weeks Hockey News, basically saying, it's not all in the goalie equipment.

I think it was Ken Campbell who wrote the piece.

He took a look at blocked shots from 10 or 15 years ago. He was making the argument that PLAYER equpment advances have meant more players fear less when blocking a shot.

The time frame he looked at, the leading shot blocker had 142 (or something like that) and was the only player over 100 blocked shots.

This year the leader has something like 244, and there were 14 players over 100 blocked shots.

There was an average of 25 blocked shots a game, up from something like 10 or 12.

So, that has also contributed to lower scores, not just goalie equiment.

Bigger goalie equipment = less space to shoot at.

Better player equipment = more blocked shots = less shots reaching the net.

It's a combination, not all on the goalies

I have to go shower now, I feel dirty after defending goalies!! :o

[mrusse01 0]

It's certainly not all on goalie equipment, but the larger/more advanced equipment they wear certainly is a factor.

Look at a picture of any goalie from the 70's to 80's and then look at Giguere or someone from today...it's common sense that the larger goalie equipment makes it tougher for players to score.

[shooter27 116]

It's definitely not all on the goalies, but I think there is something to be said for shrinking the equipment back to the size it was in the 80's (I believe the standard then was 10" pads and significantly smaller glove/blocker, but I could be mistaken on that). The increase in the size of pads is certainly not a safety issue today. With the advances in materials that today's pads are made out of I would venture to say that pads of the same size as back then would be at least 2x more protective, if not more.

That being said, reducing pad sizes again will not be a cure all for scoring issues. The blocked shots issue discussed above absolutely plays a hand in the decreased scoring. As does the increase in the size and speed of players, which reduces the amount of space guys have to take quality shots. The reality is we will probably never see a time where scoring returns to the levels of the run and gun teams in the 80s.

[NYR1982 0]

I think the blocked shots has a lot to do with it. It's almost as if defensemen have taken on the additional role over time of goaltending. Sometimes that can backfire and lead to unexpected deflections or misdirections which ends up in the net anyway. I was a defensemen myself and I dreaded having to step in front of those shots.

[chef_ducky 0]

I think the blocked shots has a lot to do with it. It's almost as if defensemen have taken on the additional role over time of goaltending. Sometimes that can backfire and lead to unexpected deflections or misdirections which ends up in the net anyway. I was a defensemen myself and I dreaded having to step in front of those shots.

I am completely opposite. I spend half the game infront of the net, so i would not like reduced equipment

[Brokensticks 0]

Not that this is a major factor, but I imagine that having the few extra feet inside of the blue line (from shrinking the neutral zone and moving the nets back closer to the boards) helps to give defensemen/forwards extra time to anticipate shots to block. I would be curious to see if it has also lead to an increase in shots from the point as opposed to from the top of the circles on in. That too could be a reason for the increase in blocked shots.

[hockey3 0]

I think one of the biggest contributions to the decrease in scoring is the advancement of the technology of all goalie equipement from skates to goalie pads. 20 years ago the equipment was no where near advanced as it is now. Goalie equipment is now much lighter, and developed to make movement easier. This has improved how goalies are able to move side to side, and improved positioning. If you go back and just watch how goalies positioned and moved in there net, you can see that just the style of goalies has came along ways.

[epstud74 24]

Better defensemen=lower scoring

More athletic goaltenders=lower scoring

Better equipment=more blocked shots

Better defensive strategy=lower scoring

Need I go on?

[cabreezy 0]

Maybe they should just do away with equipment al together, change the puck into a ball and make the nets ridiculously larger...

hmmm

[LkptTiger 1]

I'm too young to remember hockey in the '80s, but I've seen enough footage to say this much: the game is just different. We can't sit and try to identify all the reasons why hockey is different...it just IS. The sooner the Suits realize this, the better-off we'll all be.

[Gummer12 134]

Maybe they should just do away with equipment al together, change the puck into a ball and make the nets ridiculously larger...

hmmm

aka soccer (For the leypersons)

There is One area of concern that I see they could restrict on, but I'm not going to mention it out of fear they might see this and actually do it, and then it'll trickle down the ranks like the 11" rule has. I don't see them making the pad companies completely retool again and mandate 10". They're just upset that the scoring hasn't increased like they thought it would. Perhaps Bettman will incorporate some of his ridiculous Basketball ideas and install an 'Illegal Defense' rule.

[mrusse01 0]

Better defensemen=lower scoring

More athletic goaltenders=lower scoring

Better equipment=more blocked shots

Better defensive strategy=lower scoring

Need I go on?

Better forwards= more scoring

More athletic forwards= more scoring

Better equipment= more scoring

Better offensive strategy= more scoring

All that stuff goes both ways.

The nets have stayed the same size, but the goalie's have gotten bigger. It's an obvious and simple problem to fix; make the goalie smaller, or the net bigger, and goal scoring will go up.

[NYR1982 0]

Better defensemen=lower scoring

More athletic goaltenders=lower scoring

Better equipment=more blocked shots

Better defensive strategy=lower scoring

Need I go on?

It's hard to argue with that one. The size and speed of players today is also a contributing factor. I think the emphasis on fitness and sports medicine today is much stronger than before. Most goalies are in fantastic physical condition which allows them to be quicker and stronger.

[RadioGaGa 162]

Maybe they should just do away with equipment al together, change the puck into a ball and make the nets ridiculously larger...

hmmm

aka soccer (For the leypersons)

There is One area of concern that I see they could restrict on, but I'm not going to mention it out of fear they might see this and actually do it, and then it'll trickle down the ranks like the 11" rule has. I don't see them making the pad companies completely retool again and mandate 10". They're just upset that the scoring hasn't increased like they thought it would. Perhaps Bettman will incorporate some of his ridiculous Basketball ideas and install an 'Illegal Defense' rule.

Or a shot clock *L* There MUST be a shot every 35 seconds.

[Neal 41]

I think they should look at equipment every year, especially goalie equipment. The equipment manufacturers aren't going to stop innovating, so the NHL needs to stay on top of it to make sure unfair advantages aren't created.

Perhaps if they had been this vigilant in the past, composite sticks wouldn't have taking over the NHL and one reason for bigger goalie equipment would be gone.

[Penguinsfanatic 0]

Or they could do what basketball does and not call any penalties.....oh wait that was the old NHL.

Well I think one way they could change the game is to have rules against the trap. It would cut down on the amount of dump and chase, which is another reason scoring is down. Skaters don't try and take the puck in like they used to.

All in all, I think the game is still exciting to watch, with a few minor things going on right now, like how refs and linesmen jump right on the players in a scrum and everything and its brother is being called

[Chadd 916]

Better defensemen=lower scoring

More athletic goaltenders=lower scoring

Better equipment=more blocked shots

Better defensive strategy=lower scoring

Need I go on?

Better forwards= more scoring

More athletic forwards= more scoring

Better equipment= more scoring

Better offensive strategy= more scoring

All that stuff goes both ways.

The nets have stayed the same size, but the goalie's have gotten bigger. It's an obvious and simple problem to fix; make the goalie smaller, or the net bigger, and goal scoring will go up.

You make a huge leap in saying that it does go both ways. It could in theory, but reality is very different. When all of the strategies, coaching and film study is focued on defense, scoring will go down.

[mrusse01 0]

You're right about the strategy aspect being currently focused on defensive tactics....but regardless, my point still stands that if you decrease the size of the goalie, or increase the size of the net, goal scoring will go up, guaranteed.

If the NHL wants to increase scoring (something I don't agree with), by far the quickest and easiest way to do so is to make the goalie smaller.

[Dangles? 0]

Making goalie equipment smaller might solve the problem temporarily but its only going to be "a bandaid for a bullet wound", the game will become more defensive orientited and you will see a return to the old NHL of trapping the neautral zone, goalies will just adapt to the smaller equipment over time and learn to use their equipment as effectively as they used too, and different training methods will only evolve out of this to help solve this issue for goalies, reducing the pad size isnt going to solve the issue of a low amount of scoring.

[dcdot377 0]

you need to take into consideration of how much BETTER the goalies have gotten over the years. if you look at old footage from the 70's (far back i know) none of thoes goalie could play today. the stand-up style is gone from competitive hockey and the closest you get is a hybrid style. unfortunatly you cant make the goalies less bad. but they will adapt to the equipment and we will have the same problem in a few years untill they get rid of the goalie all togather.

[Jason Harris 31]

I don't see how having smaller goalie equipment puts the goalies at jeopardy, nor how it might hurt the game, so they might as well give it a try. I doubt the increase in scoring would be significant, however.

By the way, we're supposed to remember back to the 70's????

[Smitty34 0]

I agree, I don't think scoring would increase much, if at all. I don't think it puts goalies at risk either. They are well trained and conditioned, and it isn't like they'd be making the goalies wear pillows.

[UMWhockey 0]

back in the 70's the goalies were making saves... now goalies just get hit with the puck... just look at J. S. Giguere, he is great in a game, but put him in a situation like a shoot-out where he needs reactions and he is lost. When being able to be that big in net takes away some of the athleticism from the position then it needs to be looked into.