Could Changes Be On The Way?

Changes come about after months of debate and input from various individuals who understand the game and look at way’s of improving it for the players and the fans.

While the Stanley Cup is being played out in New York it should be noted that NHL GM’s did make progress toward the implementation of a challenge from the Coach on the bench.

This for various reasons could not be finalized at their annual Stanley Cup final meeting in the “big Apple”.

The issue (it seems) is trying to define what cases would be subject to challenges and how the process would work and only due to this the GMs sounded optimistic something would be agreed on, sooner rather than later.

Pittsburgh Penguins Coach Jim Rutherford told the media “It would be related to a coach’s challenge and so instead of jumping right into it, maybe everybody understands when the coaches are going to challenge.”

Coach’s challenges and the possibility of expanded video review dominated Wednesday’s meeting and one thing that did seem clear was that goaltender interference would not be part of any such changes due to various interpretations.

Commissioner Gary Bettman said “You want certainty, you want black-and-white where we can say, ‘This is it’ and, ‘This is not it.'”

Don Maloney of the Phoenix Coyotes said. “Goals going over the line, that’s certainty, black-and-white. When you start talking about goalie interference for example, now you start talking about judgment calls. … That’s when it gets grey.”

What coaches might be able to challenge includes goals scored on plays that should’ve been offside, the puck hitting the protective netting, the wrong player getting penalized and the puck going over the glass for a penalty.

Discussions also centred on cracking down on embellishment, and changing the draft lottery for 2015-16 and beyond to be more like the NBA’s that allows the first three picks to be attainable.

Any draft-lottery changes would not go into effect until 2016, leaving the much-anticipated Connor McDavid and Jack Eichel 2015 event subject to the same system there is now.

GMs gave their approval on those competition committee recommendations, including allowing a more liberal definition of kicked-in goals, expanding the trapezoid, doing a dry scrape of the ice and changing ends before overtime, and making some faceoff changes.

Consensus wasn’t so clear on expanded video review out of Toronto’s situation room or coach’s challenges.

One problem is the possibility of delaying games, which Major League Baseball is dealing with in its first season with replay beyond home runs.

The discussion will continue when the NHL’s board of governors convenes later in June and must approve any changes along with the NHLPA executive committee.

Rutherford stressed that coach’s challenges won’t be there next season.

Let’s hope they are headed in the right direction for the game, the players and the fans!!