Change The OT Format For Rounds 1 & 2 Of The Stanley Cup Playoffs
from Kevin Paul Dupont of the Boston Globe,
...begin OT games in Rounds 1 and 2 with the sides skating four on four. If it remains tied at the 70-minute mark mark (midway through the first OT), drop down another gear to three on three.
There remains the prospect games will still go to double and triple OT, but it’s not a very realistic prospect. All that open ice should lead to quick, and no less dramatic, endings. Shootouts are a gimmick. But play at four on four and three on three remains part of the game, and usually generates more fun and scoring chances.
In fact, it’s possible the tension and entertainment factor will be even greater, with skaters afforded more room to create plays as the ice opens up because of the change in manpower. Like the regular season, the team awarded a power play will be allowed to add a skater. All of it has to be better than exhausted five-on-five play.
Also in the final two rounds, including the conference finals and the Cup Final, the return to the old format in series-clinching games would bring back just enough touch of the old world to satisfy the traditionalists.
It isn’t the prospect of a midnight or 1 a.m. finish that separates the quality of Stanley Cup play from all the rest. Longer is not more. In fact, it is typically less.
more and other topics too......
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