NHL likes threesomes
NHL: Proposal simply needs rubber stamp from board, likewise with coach’s challenge
NHL general managers decided that three-on-three overtime for five minutes is the way to go. ‘If there are less shootouts, I’m all for it,’ Ducks GM Bob Murray said.
LASVEGAS — Here in this gambling mecca where numbers rule, the No. 3 reigned supreme on Tuesday.
Indeed, after meeting for almost five hours at the posh Bellagio Hotel and Resort, NHL general managers decided that three-on-three overtime for five minutes is the way to go.
If the proposal gets rubberstamped by the league’s board of governors on Wednesday, the new format will be implemented in time for the beginning of the 2015-16 season.
The concept likely will go over well with the players, if John Tavares’s take symbolizes that of his colleagues.
“You get a lineup of, say, Crosby, Malkin, Letang going up against Toews, Kane, Duncan Keith, what’s not to like?” Tavares said.
“I think people might think it’s kind of gimmicky, but I think people will see the best players in the world with open ice make plays, I think it will be fun to play in and special to watch.”
The National Hockey League Players’ Association favoured three-onthree for five minutes instead of the American Hockey League format — three minutes of four-on-four followed by three-on-three until the end of a seven-minute period — according to Detroit Red Wings general manager Ken Holland.
In the process, four-on-four overtime is now dead.
“It’s taken a long time,” said Holland, who has led the charge for the implementation of the format.
“I believe that three-on-three is going to be as entertaining as a shootout and maybe more entertaining because it’s going to be a team concept. There’s going to be breakdowns, two-on-ones. I think there’s going to be some breakaways involved on three-on-three. It’s going to be entertaining and in the end it’s going to be determined in a higher percentage of team play.”
Anaheim Ducks GM Bob Murray was more to the point.
“If there are less shootouts, I’m all for it,” Murray said.
In 2014-15, there were 170 shootouts during the NHL regular season. That was eight fewer than the total in 2013-14.
To Murray’s point, there should be far less than that moving forward now that three-on-three appears to be the order of the day, pending approval by the board of governors.
Upon further review ...
The GMs also determined that a coach’s challenge system for goals on goalie interference and offside plays will also go forward if the board approves the motion on Wednesday.
“Obviously, there’s a few goals during the course of the year that everybody knows maybe the wrong call was made,” Holland said. “This gives a coach the opportunity to get it overturned.”
Capped out
The general managers also learned on Tuesday that the upper limit of the salary cap for the 2015-16 season will be $71.4 million, with the lower limit set at $52.8 million.
With the ceiling set, GMs can start working toward getting their rosters cap compliant for the upcoming season.
Now thatt he numbers are in, a number of GMs said trade talk has started to escalate, with teams with limited cap space looking to deal assets in return for picks with the 2015 entry draft beginning on Friday.
“I think the last several months, the (cap) number has fallen in probably pretty close to where people expected it to be,” Calgary Flames GM Brad Treliving said.
“It’s like every year: people are going to have to make some decisions based on financial reasons. We’ll see what moves happen.”