![]() |
STUPID!!! COMPLETELY STUPID!!! |
The trapezoid for those that don't know is a portion of blue ice behind the goalie's net which if the goalie plays the puck outside of the trapezoid, they receive a penalty. I'll leave it to you to figure how that's supposed to increase offense. The trapezoid was implemented amid fears that popular defensive styles (aka "the trap") that teams were using to compensate for over-expansion and a depleted talent pool was making the game less popular. Goalies being able to freely play the puck was thought to bog down offense because of their ability to quickly get the puck out of the zone thereby nullifying possible offensive opportunities.
However I didn't realize how lame this was until watching the Olympics last year where the trapezoid was removed. The quality of hockey vastly improved without the trapezoid, the speed of the game increased, and I think there were more scoring chances with the goalie much more involved in the play. Not only do I feel that the trapezoid slows down the game but it subtracted one of the most exciting elements. How many times have we seen a goalie wander from the net to play the puck only to miscalculate and either be burned or have to make a scrambling save? Also with the trapezoid you limit the elite puck-handling goalies like Brodeur, DiPietro, and Turco while rewarding the lousy puck-handling goalies. Plus let's be honest, the blue paint behind the NHL nets just looks dumb.
World hunger, disease, and the threat of nuclear war can wait. I'm calling on all who read this to do the right thing and demand the NHL get rid of the trapezoid. For the good of hockey and for the good of the fans. In fact, e-mail me if you can come up with a decent reason why the trapezoid exists. I'll post any reasoning anyone has.
And for the love of god, leave the ****ing game alone.
No comments:
Post a Comment