***2024 NHL Regular Season Thread***

For example, a lot of top goalies now days are between 6'3 and 6'5. As big as you can get and have excellent body control. Instead of "Saving the puck" what you're really taught is body positioning and reaction so that no matter where the puck is, your hopefully large body covers 95% of the net. The next step of goaltending is learning to deflect the puck away when it hits you. Boom that's goaltending.

So people see a shooter fire it into a waiting glove and think what's the big deal? The big deal is the goalie had the anticipation and body control to get the glove there before the shooter even fires it. The goalie moving the glove is faster than a shooter can fire a shot, but once the puck is out and shot, a goalie's reactions can't beat it. Its like moving the body to block the angle of a gun vs. trying to catch a bullet.

edit: The desperation saves that usually get sports highlights are actually like broken plays. A QB scrambling and jumping and diving chucking it in the air to a WR that broke off the route. Pretty cool. But the play was broken and someone failed at their job.

Originally posted by SunDevilNiner79:
There have been a lot changes over the years. "Dead Puck Era" is generally thought of as 1997-2004 which is the lowest scoring season in all of NHL history. The 2005 lockout attempted to reverse it by enforcing rules that already existed. Pre-2005, NHL refs generally let a LOT of rule violations go and were more of mediators than rule enforcers.

In Gretzky's era, scoring was generally high because techniques on shooting/scoring so greatly outpaced techniques on goaltending and playing defense. What happened is in the 90's:

-goalies developed the "butterfly" position, essentially play the position on your knees instead of standing up because of they way pads are designed you will mathematically cover more area. Before goalie masks, this style to play down low would be suicide, goalie masks allowed the goalies to move away from standup styles. Patrick Roy broke through the league in the mid-80s and is considered the Godfather of the current coaching of goaltending technique, and by the mid-90s every goalie was emulating Roy's style with some deviation.

-Scotty Bowman and the Red Wings develop Left Wing Lock strategy in the mid-90s. I guess the easiest way to describe this is usually a team has 3 forwards and 2 D. This concept was if you don't have the puck, your Left Winger plays D so you only have 2 forwards and 3 D when you don't have the puck. This was a huge change because it emphasized defensive hockey first and forwards were expected to give up scoring opportunities to play better D.

-Clutch and Grab strategy was then added in late 90s as a purposeful strategy. For most of hockey's history, rules weren't enforced strictly. Instead players were expected to play through contact. It was ideally about the tough guy should get the benefit of being tougher rather than be a ticky-tack wimp league like soccer. This goes back to 60's/70s goon era hockey. But in the 80's, NHL teams went full on enforcers, guys that couldn't play at all but were there to fight to prevent Clutch and Grab of top players (like Gretzky). The NHL cracked down on these professional goons in the 90s some and teams began coaching players to do Clutch and Grab, suddenly you have a bunch of big players that just grabbed jerseys and sticks and interfered with everyone.

The 5 highest scoring seasons (post WW2) in NHL history:
1981-82 - 4.01 goals per game / .873 goalie save percentage
1985-86 - 3.97 goals per game / .874 goalie save percentage
1983-84 - 3.94 goals per game / .873 goalie save percentage
1984-85 - 3.89 goals per game / 8.75 goalie save percentage
1982-83 - 3.86 goals per game / .875 goalie save percentage

5 Lowest scoring seasons (post WW2):
2003-04 - 2.57 goals per game / .911 goalie save percentage
2001-02 - 2.62 goals per game / .908 goalie save percentage
1998-99 - 2.63 goals per game / .908 goalie save percentage
1997-98 - 2.64 goals per game / .906 goalie save percentage
2002-03 - 2.65 gaosl per game / .909 goalie save percentage

Edit:
Sorry the mid 2000's rule change was suppose to be about enforcing rules to eliminate Clutch and Grab.
To give an idea on its effectiveness, 2019-20 is the 27th highest scoring post WW2 season. So even with the rules changes, current hockey isn't even a top 20 in terms of high scoring. They likely would need to introduce bigger nets to get it close to the #s of Gretzyk's era.

Goalies using butterfly with modern pads creates an entirely different sport than what Gretzky faced. Modern goalies, its all about playing mathematic odds for the most part. Pre-butterfly goalies it was about eye hand coordination and reaction, which is impossible against skilled shooters.

I guess a way to compare it, its like Gretzky era had only fastball pitchers. That's it. You learn to hit a fastball and you know every pitch. Then suddenly think a decade later every other pitch was developed.

pants rule

Originally posted by Rubberneck36:
- Its pretty cool they pulled a 42 year old Zamboni driver out of the stands as the emergency backup goalie. He'd never played pro hockey before and got the W. Guess anyone can make it in the NHL.

He had some AHL experience. It is akin to a A to AAA baseball player getting the call up to the pros. Not the same as just any dude on the street.

Ayres played eight games with the Norwood Vipers of the Allan Cup Hockey League in 2014. As a goaltender, he allowed 58 goals, had a .777 save percentage and an 0–8 record.[4] Ayres has served as a backup to both the Toronto Marlies and Charlotte Checkers in the American Hockey League (AHL), the primary affiliates of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes, respectively.

Originally posted by NineFourNiner:

Originally posted by Rubberneck36:
- Its pretty cool they pulled a 42 year old Zamboni driver out of the stands as the emergency backup goalie. He'd never played pro hockey before and got the W. Guess anyone can make it in the NHL.

He had some AHL experience. It is akin to a A to AAA baseball player getting the call up to the pros. Not the same as just any dude on the street.

Ayres played eight games with the Norwood Vipers of the Allan Cup Hockey League in 2014. As a goaltender, he allowed 58 goals, had a .777 save percentage and an 0–8 record.[4] Ayres has served as a backup to both the Toronto Marlies and Charlotte Checkers in the American Hockey League (AHL), the primary affiliates of the Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes, respectively.

That part was a joke

Originally posted by Rubberneck36:
That part was a joke

xoxo

Originally posted by NineFourNiner:

Originally posted by Rubberneck36:
That part was a joke

xoxo

was still a super cool story tho

Record 32 trades at the deadline this year

Originally posted by Rubberneck36:

Originally posted by NineFourNiner:

Originally posted by Rubberneck36:
That part was a joke

xoxo

was still a super cool story tho

ppl drive Zambonis every day b.

Holy s**t that Blackhawks/Blues game was nuts

BANG BANG GOLDEN GANG!!!! 7 in a ROW BEACHES!!!

Originally posted by braap49er:
BANG BANG GOLDEN GANG!!!! 7 in a ROW BEACHES!!!

BANG BANG SET YOUR FANTASY LINEUP GANG!!!!!!

Lol

Originally posted by jrg:

Originally posted by braap49er:

BANG BANG GOLDEN GANG!!!! 7 in a ROW BEACHES!!!

BANG BANG SET YOUR FANTASY LINEUP GANG!!!!!!

Oh s**t, only 2 wins??? It's rigged!!

BANG BANG GOLDEN GANG!!! 8 IN A ROW!!!

Hey there are there byes in the playoffs only asking since it's a eight team league with 6 making it.Big game tonight jrg would have liked it more if igor was in net then that bulgarian f**k!!!!.Hate him with a passion.

Originally posted by diehardnyninerfan:

Hey there are there byes in the playoffs only asking since it's a eight team league with 6 making it.Big game tonight jrg would have liked it more if igor was in net then that bulgarian f**k!!!!.Hate him with a passion.

Top 2 teams earn a bye