League won't score big until rules are enforced

Sporting News, The, Jan 26, 1998 by Larry Wigge

When Dallas coach Ken Hitchcock looks at the World All-Star roster he has been entrusted with, he smiles--then he wonders aloud what line combinations he might use. "I could have a line from Sweden with Peter Forsberg, Mats Sundin and Daniel Alfredsson," he says. "I could have a Russian line with Pavel Bure, Igor Larionov and Valeri Kamensky. I could have a line from Finland with Jari Kurri, Teemu Selanne and Saku Koivu.

"Wait. I need a fourth line. Who's left? Jaromir Jagr? Peter Bondra? Zigmund Palffy? Bobby Holik? Maybe I should start over. After all, my players in Dallas told me now I'll have players not listen to me in seven different languages."

All of that talent, not to mention the Eric Lindroses and Paul Kariyas from Canada and Brian Leetches and Mike Modanos from the United States, and still the biggest question the NHL faces in the second half of the season is the lack of scoring. Mind-boggling isn't it?

Hitchcock, who coaches the No. 1 rated Stars, might say something has been lost in the translation. Wayne Gretzky, the game's greatest scorer, says the game should be fast and aggressive.

"We've got the most exciting game in the world, but you can't play it fast and aggressive if referees allows players to hold and tackle and slash," says Gretzky, whose former teammate, Brett Hull, will miss weeks after a slash by Tomas Sandstorm. "We've got the opportunity of a lifetime to show the world our game at the Olympics--but it's got to be the same game we are trying to sell to our fans every night in the regular season."

NHL vice president Brian Burke says the game doesn't need wholesale changes. "This isn't the black plague," he says. "Don't panic."

Yes, we know goal tending is at its best. And coaches have become geniuses at devising game plans to play not to lose. Don't even mention the in-the-crease credo.

Scoring is down more than one-half goal per game, and officials are telling us not to worry. With 91 shutouts at the All-Star break, last season's record of 127, which was 31 higher than ever, will be obliterated.

In 1992-93, 21 players had 100 points. There were 12 in 1995-96. At the All-Star break only Peter Forsberg and John LeClair were on pace for 100.

Only LeClair, Teemu Selanne and peter Bondra were on pace to eclipse 50 goals, which would be the fewest since 1977-78.

You won't find two more exciting players in the game, today than Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne," Gretzy says. "If they played in the early 1980s when Jari Kurri and I did, they would challenge our records. Yet they can't in the game we play now because defense rules."

Hitchcock says he sees teams beginning to beat the dreaded neutral-zone trap by "chipping the puck past the opponent instead of dropping it back and trying to make the perfect pass."

"It took a couple of years, but teams in the NFL began to beat the Bears' 46 defense," Hitchcock says, "but it's not the be-all, end-all and goals are going to start pouring out."

Senators coach Jacques Martin says fore-checking has become a thing of the past because defenders are allowed to ride a forward out of the play without being called for interference.

"References were calling it a couple of years ago (1995-96)," Martin says, "and then some of our great minds at the top decided we needed to tighten up the game."

So how can the NHL attract viewers who might normally only tune in to hockey to root for "USA, USA, USA?"

"The trap we're seeing is illegal," Flyers G.M. Bobby Clarke says. "According to the rule book, you can't face a player and impede his progress. You can only check him if you're skating in the same direction."

Clarke believes if the NHL banned the trap, it wouldn't need to consider other rule changes, like removing he center red line, to open up the game.

"I would like to see (removing the red line) tried in exhibition games, but players who have experienced, say it leads to a lot of icings because of all the long passes," Clarke says. "Instead of changing the rules, we should be enforcing the ones we have.

"The fans want more excitement. The other night we played Montreal--two pretty good teams with size and speed--but the loudest the building got was when a couple of kids' teams were on the ice between the first and second period. We have to do something."

NHL general managers have talked about moving the net out 13 feet from the backboards to create more room around the net. Bruins G.M. Harry Sinden agrees with Clarke. He has proposed zero-tolerance interference for years.

And no one listened. Until now--perhaps.

RELATED ARTICLE: Not everyone is trapped

Stars coach Hitchcock says there are ways to overcome the low scores in the NHL. Just look at games played by the top teams.

"There is so much traffic around the net and in the corners of the offensive zone that kind of a funnel out toward the blue line where skilled defensemen can step up a little and contribute offensively," he says. "Three of our top eight scorers are defensemen, same with St. Louis. Look at what Nicklas Lidstrom and Larry Murphy have done in Detroit, Sandis Ozolinsh in Colorado and Scott Niedermayer in New Jersey.