Sportsnet Anti Brodeur Rule Soccer Perspective [Archive]

Unthinkable

02-13-2004, 11:32 PM

http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/columnist.jsp?content=20040213_172800_3112

<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="324">Speaking of goalies

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It's been over a decade since soccer restricted the ways goaltenders can handle the ball. Any lessons here for the NHL?

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Problems, people, we have problems! The game is dull. Scoring is down. Fans are getting tired of seeing great goal scorers standing around helplessly as defenders grind their creativity to dust. We need to make changes. We need to tinker with the game. History's one thing; hysterical under-reaction is another.But what can we do? I'm ever so glad you asked.

Go after the goalies! Specifically, keep them in their place by cutting into their ability to leave their nets. Make them know they can no longer float into the play anytime they want to. Let's pass a big new rule to stop them from handling the ball so much.

Ball? Aren't we talking about hockey here? Isn't this very anguish breaking out right now in the hallowed halls of hockey's heaviest hitters? Well, yes it is, but I'm the soccer columnist around here, and I just happen to be ranting about soccer.

Specifically, soccer in the wake of the 1990 World Cup in Italy. The late eighties are now generally conceded to have been a low-water mark for the beautiful game. The words "soccer" and "excitement" made as much sense in the same sentence then as "Toronto Maple Leafs" and "Stanley Cup parade tomorrow on Yonge Street."
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Unthinkable

02-13-2004, 11:34 PM

There are, of course, huge differences between soccer and the problems dogging hockey now. NHL general managers want to stop goalies from handling the puck behind the goal line because they feel it effectively creates a third defenceman for opposing forwards to beat. They may even be right.

The biggest difference, to me, is one of artistry. In the case of soccer, there wasn't any. Goalies just bounced the ball, and eventually got around to hoofing it. As much as I'd like to see more wide-open action in professional hockey, I don't think it's right to strangle the considerable puck-handling skills of Marty Brodeur or Ed Belfour.

What about Ron Hextall back in the eighties? You never knew where he would be, or what miracle/horror was about to happen next. Hockey fans in their forties and up still fondly recall the wanderings of Gary "Suitcase" Smith, out of his crease and bravely battling the essential impossibility of being an optimistic Oakland Seal.
Watching the hockey highlights on any given morning, you really don't have to wait long to see some poor boob of an NHL goalie getting caught on the backboards while some delighted enemy sniper rifles his empty net. Has anyone actually counted how often that happens? Does it happen enough to cancel out the projected scoring increases if the goalies stay put?

There's one important thing you have to remember when you're tinkering with rules. Whenever you change something, something else changes. Every rule change, in other words, has unexpected effects.

In soccer, I think it's fair to say things eventually worked out well for everyone - although the rule wasn't good news for goalies who couldn't kick worth beans in the open field. Hockey's proposed tinkering is every bit as drastic, but I don't think the ultimate goal is anywhere near as clearly defined.

FIFA knew exactly what it was doing when it put the clamps on goalies. The NHL, I fear, is guessing.


	HFBoards > NHL Eastern Conference > Atlantic Division > New Jersey Devils > Sportsnet Anti Brodeur Rule Soccer Perspective PDA Sportsnet Anti Brodeur Rule Soccer Perspective Unthinkable 02-13-2004, 11:32 PM http://www.sportsnet.ca/soccer/columnist.jsp?content=20040213_172800_3112 <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr><td valign="top" width="324">Speaking of goalies </td> <td align="right" valign="top" width="210"> <!-- COLUMNIST IMAGE --> http://www.sportsnet.ca/images/columnists/headshots/Ben_Knight.gif </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> http://www.sportsnet.ca/images/shim.gif <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="100%"> <tbody><tr><td>http://www.sportsnet.ca/images/shim.gif</td> <td> <!-- STORY BLURB --> It's been over a decade since soccer restricted the ways goaltenders can handle the ball. Any lessons here for the NHL? </td></tr></tbody> </table> Problems, people, we have problems! The game is dull. Scoring is down. Fans are getting tired of seeing great goal scorers standing around helplessly as defenders grind their creativity to dust. We need to make changes. We need to tinker with the game. History's one thing; hysterical under-reaction is another.But what can we do? I'm ever so glad you asked. Go after the goalies! Specifically, keep them in their place by cutting into their ability to leave their nets. Make them know they can no longer float into the play anytime they want to. Let's pass a big new rule to stop them from handling the ball so much. Ball? Aren't we talking about hockey here? Isn't this very anguish breaking out right now in the hallowed halls of hockey's heaviest hitters? Well, yes it is, but I'm the soccer columnist around here, and I just happen to be ranting about soccer. Specifically, soccer in the wake of the 1990 World Cup in Italy. The late eighties are now generally conceded to have been a low-water mark for the beautiful game. The words "soccer" and "excitement" made as much sense in the same sentence then as "Toronto Maple Leafs" and "Stanley Cup parade tomorrow on Yonge Street." . . . Unthinkable 02-13-2004, 11:34 PM There are, of course, huge differences between soccer and the problems dogging hockey now. NHL general managers want to stop goalies from handling the puck behind the goal line because they feel it effectively creates a third defenceman for opposing forwards to beat. They may even be right. The biggest difference, to me, is one of artistry. In the case of soccer, there wasn't any. Goalies just bounced the ball, and eventually got around to hoofing it. As much as I'd like to see more wide-open action in professional hockey, I don't think it's right to strangle the considerable puck-handling skills of Marty Brodeur or Ed Belfour. What about Ron Hextall back in the eighties? You never knew where he would be, or what miracle/horror was about to happen next. Hockey fans in their forties and up still fondly recall the wanderings of Gary "Suitcase" Smith, out of his crease and bravely battling the essential impossibility of being an optimistic Oakland Seal. Watching the hockey highlights on any given morning, you really don't have to wait long to see some poor boob of an NHL goalie getting caught on the backboards while some delighted enemy sniper rifles his empty net. Has anyone actually counted how often that happens? Does it happen enough to cancel out the projected scoring increases if the goalies stay put? There's one important thing you have to remember when you're tinkering with rules. Whenever you change something, something else changes. Every rule change, in other words, has unexpected effects. In soccer, I think it's fair to say things eventually worked out well for everyone - although the rule wasn't good news for goalies who couldn't kick worth beans in the open field. Hockey's proposed tinkering is every bit as drastic, but I don't think the ultimate goal is anywhere near as clearly defined. FIFA knew exactly what it was doing when it put the clamps on goalies. The NHL, I fear, is guessing.