Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Red Lights...

...and they certainly aren't for goals in hockey.

There is no secret here. I live for hockey. For the past 28 years there has been very little of my life that has not involved hockey -- as a player, a coach, an official, or just as a fan.

It pains me to see this, but the NHL needs a change.

OK, you're going -- didn't they have a lockout over big change? Yes they did. But they only fixed one aspect of the game. The lockout was all about money.

There in lies the problem. Yes, it is a business, but NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman (who actually ranks below Tony George on my list of sports executives, if you can imagine that) only seems to grasp the concept of money, and has totally taken his eyes off the game.

Now, since he got his Salary Cap... er, excuse me... COST CERTAINTY, he has continued his ill-fated efforts to make the NHL the NBA. Let's remember, he was David Stern's #2 man, before starting his personal jihad against the game of hockey.

Monetary control -- he has that now. So now he is still on his quest to bring more scoring to the NHL. Good concept, poor execution. Really, Bettman is under the impression that scoring brings excitement, and that brings more money.

WRONG.

Scoring is a good thing, but there is plenty of excitement in a 2-1 hockey game. I'll put it this way. In any given basketball game, there are nearly 100 scoring plays. So... what constitutes a highlight? I don't care to see a ten-foot jump shot, which puts a team up 2-0 in a game that will end 94-82. Likewise, maybe a team goes on a 14-6 run in the third quarter to open up a lead... but what makes any of those points more important than points one and two? Points 93 and 94 in that game certainly are anti-climactic as well.

Less is more in this case.

Yes, there is a small problem with scoring in the NHL. But, it is not something that is a quick fix. You can not tweak one thing to fix this problem. This is what we call a systematic problem. The whole system is screwed.

1. Goaltending Pads. I'm going to hate myself in the morning for saying this. But, since the days of Garth Snow putting what appeared to be a 36" x 36" plywood board down the front of his sweater, and Robert Luongo's 42"-tall goal pads (for those of you keeping track, and hockey goal is just 48" high), the over-grown goaltender has become a major issue.

Take a look at former Los Angeles Kings goaltender Kelly Hrudey, circa 1995. Compare him to current Anaheim Ducks goaltender Jean-Sebastien Gigure, and you will see what I mean.

Better yet, look at former NHL goaltender Patrick Roy in his rookie season with Montreal, and then at him in his final season in Colorado. No, he didn't grow... maybe a bit more tone in the muscles, but not THAT much.

The size of the pads does need to come down a bit. And maybe they should be less "boxy", and more form-fitting like they used to be. Goaltenders back then didn't get hurt as often -- but that might leads us back to my rant against weight training.

2. Penalty Shots. What was once considered "the most exciting play in hockey" has been bastardized. Bettman decreed that more people wanted to see penalty shots, because they are exciting.

WRONG.

They're exciting because they are so rare. Now, not a day goes by in the NHL without a penalty shot -- either in-game, or in a tie-breaker.

What Bettman has done is the equivalent of MLB Commissioner Bud Selig telling a team they can not use bats in a game because no-hitters are exciting. You can't make these things happen -- they just happen on their own accord. It's the right set of circumstances coming together.

2-1/2. Ties. Not every game needs a winner. Some days neither team deserves to win. Some days neither team deserves to lose. Some days the teams are just that evenly matched.

What is with the concept of instant gratification? Forget it! Ties are a part of the game... in hockey (not baseball, Mr. Selig).

Mr. Bettman, get rid of the tie-breaker shootout. You want games with no ties... you already have it -- it's called playoff hockey.

2-3/4. Playoff Hockey Overtime. You want proof that you don't need scoring to have an exciting game? 1987, New York Islanders vs. Washington Capitals. 1996, Washington Capitals vs. Pittsburgh Penguins. 2000, Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Philadelphia Flyers. 2007, Dallas Stars vs. Vancouver Canucks. 2008, San Jose Sharks vs. Dallas Stars

What all of these games have in common, is that went to at least four overtime periods. That means for at least 60 minutes (the length of an entire game... after the 60 minutes of regulation playing time) there was no scoring. But, these games only needed on goal to end them. Talk about excitement. I remember being up until my parents went to work watching some of these games.

At the same time, even in regulation a one-goal game is exciting. The struggle for that tying goal is epic, at times.

3. Diluted Talent. For many years, the NHL was 6-team league. Then it doubled to 12 teams. Eventually the league was up to 20 teams for the longest time, before 1992 and San Jose made 21 teams. By the end of the decade, the league would be up to 30 teams.

The addition of those 10 teams, meant 200 more spots on NHL rosters. 200 players, who traditionalist say would never have made it to the league. OK... some would have eventually cracked rosters, but many would still be toiling away in the minors, maybe even improving their skills against a more equal talent level.

There are others who would argue that among those 200 spots are 20 goaltender spots -- and it the skaters talent pool is diluted, so too is the goaltending talent. Yes and no. There are certainly some goaltenders who do not belong in the NHL. But you are still looking at a 10 to 1 ratio of skaters to goaltenders. Statistical logic says your talent curve is bound to fall off more from 1 to 200 than it is from 1 to 20.

4. Poor Market Location. This is the big one. This is where Bettman really faltered. He expanded the league too quickly. Not only does that hurt the talent pool, but it hurts the growth of the game.

In terms of the talent pool, 200 more players in 10 years in addition to replacing retired players stunts the development programs of the NHL teams. A top young talent is now forced up sooner, as well as a player who maybe doesn't have the all around skill set to complete. However, eventually the talent pool should restock itself, even though lesser talents are getting the call.

With the markets, it's the opposite. Expansion was driven not by need, but by novelty. Non-traditional markets in the south (Atlanta, Miami, Tampa Bay, Nashville, and Anaheim) were all given a chance... in addition to relocation projects (Dallas from Minnesota, Raleigh from Hartford, Phoenix from Winnipeg).

Fans flocked to the gates for the first few seasons. It was a novelty. People just wanted to see what it was all about. Unfortunately, they did not understand the game, just wanted to be seen at the games, and inferior talent on the ice made games less entertaining. Now most of these markets are in trouble.

The game just hasn't grown in these markets. Fewer fans are going to games, and that means less money for the teams. The problem was, the expansion was driven by greed. Potential for money, and state-of-the art buildings lured teams and the league. Suffice it to say, it was all too good to be true.


Add it all up, and you have one hurting league. There is not just one fix... though, if you want to make look like one fix, I'll tell you where to start: Gary Bettman. Get rid of the problem at the top, and replace him with someone who understands the game.

From there you can proceed wisely into the future, with a system that works.