Tuesdays With Hildy: Restrictive Goalie Rule Changes... stay or go?

Well in recent games, many goalies have been getting lit up for 4 or 5 goals a game… so as of right now I think the pad size is fine.

Though I think the trapezoid rule is stupid. When a goalie wanders into the corners it creates entertaining clusterfucks.

I’m no expert, but I would rather see goalies have to rely on athleticism, reflexes, and instincts than all the pads. Though I can see where Manny’s coming from as well.

But the rules on goalie movement have got to go. If a goalie is good enough to handle the puck like a 3rd defenseman, well, than all the better for that team. If a goalie is stupid enough to Turco-it-up and cost his team a goal…it’s not the NHL’s responsibility to restrict that.

Scrap the ’zoid, shrink the pads. Give the goalies freedom to play the puck, but at the same time make their pads for protection and not puck stopping purposes.

On a side note, CuJo looks like an 8 year-old on that old Score card.

But that should mark the “safe” zone for goaltenders to play the puck. If they want to wander out into the corners, then they should lose their protection. If you’re going to play like a 3rd defenseman, then you better get ready to be hit like a 3rd defenseman.

Oh, and when you’re well outside of the crease (i.e, in the corners) freezing the puck should be a delay of game. The pads should maybe be a little thicker, but not wider. Where are the days when a good scorer could beat a good goaltender from the top of the face-off circle?

Patrick Roy used to wear a 4XL or 5XL because the damn thing hung so low under his armpits, it was like the webbing on a Flying Squirrel. Yes, the equipment needed to be reigned in, just like curve on a hockey stick.

As far as the trapezoid goes, I always thought that they should paint the corners blood red. If a goalie wants to dig a puck out of the corner, they should be made aware that they are fair game.

That Cujo card was the first Hockey card I had and was on my wall over my desk (With 8 other Cujo cards) for years. Brought a huge smile to my face to see it again.
That said I say you have to draw a line somewhere on pad size, what I don’t agree with is their limiting them by the size of the player, make a size and stick to it. I also like the safe zone trapezoid idea while realizing they’ll never implement something that cool.

Not just the rule itself, but the punishment for it . . . my thought is, if you play the puck behind the goal line, you should be fair game for a legal hit by anyone on the ice who comes by. Sure, it’s a small area and there is a lot of room for referee judgment here, but . . . wouldn’t a Brodeur, an Osgood, a Huet or anyone else think twice about playing a puck in that area if they knew that, say, a Backes, an Ovechkin or a Malkin could get a free run at him behind the net? I’d sure as fuck think twice, I’ll say that. And if you have a goalie that does it, the defensemen had better wise up and make sure they’re protecting him from said run.

Problem solved? Fuck no, but it makes things a bit more interesting, now doesn’t it?

I was about to agree with the earlier comments about the trapezoid being a “safe zone” (because honestly, when it first showed up, I kinda thought that was how it worked anyway), but you have convinced me that this game would somehow get even better (and goalies would stop doing so many stupid things) if they could get hit anywhere behind the goal line. I’m sure we’ve all wished on numerous occasions that someone would “accidentally” flatten Osgood while he’s behind the net… this way, it wouldn’t even have to be an accident! I like it.

failure!!!!!!

I have just two simple ideas for nhl rules.

1) test em in the ahl and exchl EXSTENSIVELY first. (and just watch the ncaa who will test other rules without the nhl consent)

     —-the powerplay face off going to the offensive end? hey i like it, hey it wasn’t even an nhl idea just happened to work well at lower levels. scooooore ONE decent rule change for the nhl

      —— 1 year isnt extensive, the swing from o to d back to o has to be looked at, that is more than a season long! the most famous is the nhl making a non-touch-up icing rule to “reward possesion and carrying the puck in, and promote an nhl game on par with european standards of entry into the offensive zone”- the result? trap crap. a rule designed to reward skating and increase pointage via protection almost killed the game!!!

      ——- fear of wayno lead to the follow rule chage—- pp ends when a goal is scored. love of wayne lead to the following rule chage—— wayne likes the behind the net thing, give everyone more behind the net space!!! woooo!!! rules shoehorned into place to shore up today’s issue of the second become tomorrow’s rule change committee fodder. the specific golaie rulez are the result of golaies catching up with their teammates. offense ruled early. when d caught up they made stupid rules for the d, nor the goal tenders are class as well, nhl needs to make extra rules for them

2) i don’t want or need 30 cookie cutter ice surfaces. let the blues have some leadway, and the sharks, and the avs. get 30 experiments going. results of usable size and texture acquired faster than the micro man can talk!

    —— does long ice = more thrills? bigger neutral zone? more room behind the net? a trapazoid? taller glass? sharper corners? wider rinks? pah. blues a speed team now, let them add some surface. laimaire coaching? let him squeeze the nuetral zone. home ice advanagte!!! and in hockey, letting the home team have an advantage is good for the game still (buttman’s folly, but it is the way it is)

    ——2 i’ve never been afraid to increase the net size. not much mind ya, but just enough to make every current post hit become a goal. you want atheletic goalies to be rewarded? bigger ice surface= more important angles, larger net= more important athelticism. both=hall of famer in your pipes job one.

Thought I’d discovered every penalty on there. I now have something to live for.

trapezoid, i like idea of using it as a safe zone, the 2 minute penalty is crap.

Pads, the league went to smaller pads for more O. I grew up watching game in the arena/checkerdome most games i went to in the early 90’s always seemed to have 7 goals scored between both teams. it made a more exciting product. With the league still trying to get back on study ground, its the way to get the most ppl to watch the game. Hockey traditionalist may not like but, all 8 of them will just have to pout. Chicks did the long ball in baseball, well they like goals in hockey. I am support of smaller pads, as long as they don’t indanger the goalies, i don’t think they will or should. technology is better on everything, so why can’t it be used to make safer goalie gear? just my $0.02

What we need is to make it legal to bump (but not board-check) the goaltender when out of the crease area. That will keep them in the safe zone, or encourage them to wear less equipment for better mobility.