#nhl #hockey #vancouvercanucks
The NHL is changing with players like Cale Makar, Quinn Hughes, and Adam Fox... but this shift in offensive philosophy on the backend, is changing NHL hockey.
Check out Greg Revaks substack for some of the best hockey analysis out there: hockeysarsenal.substack.com/p....
Limiting stretch passes back in the day made the teams really work to get the puck into the offensive zone. I wonder how much better those stars could have been if they were allowed more freedom like today's players.... we'll never know!
Considering the stars back then still compete in points with a lot of great players in todays game. I think they woulda blown the current group out of the water. Imagine Forsberg and Sakic without being able to hold them and getting break out passes from their own zone at the other teams blue.
Was JUST thinking that, so true
@@hunterwcl2985Funny you only mentioned the two that played for your team and no other hockey player's that had more talent then them two😂
@@hunterwcl2985 Imagine players like Bondra, Gartner or Bure on the break constantly, 5 yards further up ice and always looking for the quick pass. Meanwhile your Scott Niedermayer and Coffeys suddenly having space on the ice like never before. Would be interesting to see how teams like mid 90's "Legion of Doom" Philly would have adjusted, or that Yzerman / Fedorov / Lidstrom Redwings as well.
Goaltending and average player speed was so much worse. The dead puck era was because goaltending and defensive ability went up. The old ways worked well when 20+ percent of shots went in, many just being wristers or half slappers from above the circle. When goalies started saving 95+ percent on low danger shots the game grinded to a halt. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed watching hockey back then but the game improved because of allowing the 2 line pass.
I can’t believe you talked about Nashville in terms of good motion and cycling. Glad to see some positive about the Preds.
The Preds are good
@@FalloutUrMumI mean, I agree now lol. A 6 game win streak definitely helps that conversation lol
@@ryanshoults123I mean, sure, but again, 6 game win streak
@@ryanshoults123what team do u like?
@@ryanshoults123 bruh i was just wondering😭😭
I haven’t been all that interested in hockey since I played it as a kid, but recently some of your videos have been put in my recommended. And just something about the way you talk about things is interesting, and has brought back some interest in the game I used to have.
Hockey has never been better or more beautiful than now. You should get back into it.
Just goes to show how transformative and unique Orr was at the time , especially through the high scoring 80's and early 90's, that it took this long to break this particular record.
Nah just proves that hockey was truly horrible back then and shouldn't be mentioned. A truth old boomers will have a hard time admitting.
I watched some old footage of Bure and other russian players, the way they move makes them look like modern players.
@@KamaiyahFurriends wow you're truly ignorant about this sport. its okay. welcome, newcomer
you literally took someone else's comment and added a few more words lmao copier.
I was fortunate to share row 12, centre-ice seats at the Pacific Coliseum during Bure's first 3 years in the NHL. Without question, the most exciting player that I have seen play live. I have been to games all over the continent since the 1970s. Never watched a more explosive skater, with stick-handling skills to rival the young Pavel Bure.@@harackmw
Recently got into hockey because i loved it as a kid and wanted something i could bond with my dad over. This channel is teaching me a lot. Thanks for being such an informative source.
Well listen to these videos and then go look up the information yourself because it's not accurate. First of all, the GAA nearly doubled in the NHL when they shrunk goalie pads by a half inch They have shrunk blockers, trappers, masks, jerseys - they even micromanage how much tape of goalie can have on their paddle So you might want to take this information with a grain of salt - this is someone who is for-profit, looking for clicks. And they totally missed what actually happened. I was there during that era, I was a goalie skills coach. I was also a parent of a goalie trying to keep up with those changes.
@thegulch1780 my comment was about learning more to talk to my dad about, why did you come in here trauma dumping about something completely unrelated? Either suggest a place to get more accurate info, or resist the urge to talk shit about the channel, because what you had to say just seems irrelevant to me.
@@theOneTrueCactus what? I thought we were talking about hockey. Learning accurate information.. Yeah Dad's & hockey are great.
Hockey is fun as well to watch these days, I love it. I was a goalie back in the day, I don't envy what goalies have to deal with now but it has forced them to up their game and they have gotten better as well overall. I only wish they wouldn't get blamed as much as they do, people don't understand the pressure and how much a bad defense and lack of backchecking from forwards affects the quality of chances opposing teams get to score.
People IMO are a bit too lazy to look at a goal past "The goalie was bad and that's why it was scored" when there's a lot that could go on to allow a team to score, I've seen my fair share of games where the team in front of the goalie just doesn't show up and the tendy is doing everything possible to just get something to hit the puck and knock it down. I've also seen times where the goalie should make an easy save that they just don't. It's never JUST the goalie's fault.
good summary It goes to show how good Bobby Orr was the only defenseman to ever win the Art Ross trophy
Great video. One correction, the NHL lockout ended July 22, 2005. The 05-06 season was the first to be played afterwards.
Increased scoring corresponded with rules on goalie equipment. The years leading up to those rules were some of the lowest scoring in league history.
My local OHL team is using this play pattern somewhat. Talented D rotating up in the offensive zone. The downside is that a turnover at an inopportune time is more likely to lead to an odd-man rush the other way (which further elevates the average gpg stats).
My local ohl team just continues to struggle whether unlucky or puckwatching. My team has the offensive talent to win, but some of the team can’t defend well.
I stumbled onto your videos, and they have opened the window for me, to understand the plays more, how it works, and what their doing. These are some great videos.
Great video!! Love me an offensive defensemen. It only shows just how truly talented the old school scoring defensemen were...like Potvin, Borque, Leetch, McInnis, Coffy, Lindstrom, etc.
Lidstrom**
@@rogerpowers3891 Duly noted =) wont be the last hockey player's name I will misspell
This was something I tried to phase our floorball team into ten years ago. A dynamic offense where if D got high, one of the forwards, mainly the center would back home and cover. But at our level, we mostly had some preconceived stance that a D is for defense only so we played a positional style game.
Great analysis! Thank you. I'm in Sweden right now watching Dallas Stars-Tampa Bay on TV ready to apply your analysis on this game. Gotta love hockey! 👍
Thank you for this! It explains why I've had more and more trouble keeping track of positions in the last few years, even though I can read plays better than when I first got into hockey 7 years ago. Great video!
these videos are always super well done, love watching them
Cool video bud, but with the goals part yes you are correct however you have to remember they also changed goalie equipment aswell, the eqiupment for example goalies can only wear up to 38 inchs from boot to mid point, also catcher and blocker and stick and even harness aswell these factors can cause alot more goals aswell but it also makes goalie alot more faster aswell, can you do a video on goalies please?
analysis is spot on like always, keep it up!
Another on fire breakdown of today's game. Keep up the great content. Love it!
You’re one of the best dude. Been here since 20k. Love your stuff. Keep it up!
Another great video. Finding that that fact is becoming a reliable one with your vids! Sad that the Pens are only mentioned on this topic for the flip side, on how to defend the new tactics as an older, slower team. Wished there was some Letang and Karlsson highlights in there haha.
Absolutely brilliant video. A solid 10. Keep up the good work, you deserve waaaaay more subscribers.
Excellent hockey topic, your work is well appreciated!
Great video. Really digging your content, recently.
Your video was so good our teacher for my hockey academy class used it for his lesson! Keep making these high quality videos❤
People also forget two new teams in the league has slightly diluted the talent pool. Each time expansion teams come in scoring goes up a bit because there are 20-40 guys in the league that wouldn’t have been there a couple years prior.
Old Dude reared in the original 6 era here. All of this, every bit of this D transitioning to O was introduced into the NHL by Bobby Orr. He literally revolutionized the game starting in 66-67-68 with his play. Others followed who were good, though none were better than Bobby &.that still holds true. I'm an Orr over Gretzky or Howe guy, he was that good.
My man except I'm a Orr over Mario over Gretz
What was watching Howe like ?post Y2k wings fella-
Orr all day baby!!!
Yeah. I agree with this title. It's not only that. Any player on a forward line can score 20 goals. Thats how good not only teammates are now but the consistency isn't really a thing. Thats what I like. One season William Karlsson can be struggling in the AHL the other he's scoring 40 goals. Campbell who was considered a great starter is now considered one of the worst if not the worst NHL goalie. Thats what I like. The Norris could go to Quinn, Karlsson, Makar, Mcavoy, Hedman and more. Back then it would almost always be Orr or always be Gretzxy winning the Hart. That's also part of the reason I feel McDavid might go down as the best ever with his level of consistency at the top every season. Also great video as always HP. Feels like an actual interesting short documentry. #100ksubs.
It'll never happen but just imagine the skill and speed of today's NHL on the International ice size. That would be some fun hockey!
I stopped paying attention to hockey in the mid '90s, and only this past year have been getting back into it... Holy crap it is such a different game now! Your videos are very well made and have been very helpful in outlining all the changes that have made modern hockey what it is today, for better and for worse. Thanks and keep up the great work!
This was a REAL good video. Very interesting. Excellent work.
Well spoken, well explained, well edited... That moment you realize you just found your next binge.
Great thought provoking analysis! Keep it coming HP!
Your videos are always worth watching, even though they have nearly identical vague titles. If I ever want to find your video about the offensive defenceman, it won't be easy. I get that it's about the "impressions" algorithms, but ya know?
Great video. Thanks for the lesson
Very well explained! This really opened my eyes to how the game has evolved. Gone are the days of defencemen dropping anchor at the blue line! Talent has really evolved over the last 60 yrs watching and playing hockey! I remember an interview with Denis Potvin about Gretzky. He was asked if there is an unwritten rule that it’s hands off Gretzky because of his talent. Potvin laughed and said “absolutely not! You think you have him all lined up for a solid check into the boards and wind up there all by yourself! His ability to read every player and suddenly disappear is amazing!”
Very good. I learned a few things. Thanks 👌🏼
What's funny is that none of these modern motion offenses went deep in the playoffs.
Exactly what went through my head too
Did the avs not play motion offense when they won the cup?
Do you count Toronto as a team though?
This is the equivalent of just jacking up three pointers in the NBA. This isn’t a style. It’s just skating around randomly doing whatever you want. No one takes the time to learn anything anymore. Just wing it with pure talent and athletic ability. This is happening in EVERY SPORT and no one cares.
@@castlewood1371it's not skating around randomly. Look at the last highlight. Power passes to Thompson and continues to skate, freeing up space for Thompson to find the other D man. Where did Power skate to? The back side to be wide open for a tap in. He didn't end up there by chance.
This is a somewhat odd pattern I've been noticing but over the past few years it feels like both the NHL and NBA have been steadily improving in the same areas. Last playoffs for both leagues was crazy because IN BOTH LEAGUES we saw a team that only made the playoffs through the play-in go to the finals led by a scrappy, intense player and go up against an absolute power house where the powerhouse would win 4-1. We've seen the rise of scoring in both leagues, a more technical and skillful game forming in both leagues and the rise of so many superstars in both leagues. And yet, the NHL keeps kneecapping itself and not taking advantage of the game being more exciting than ever to watch by doing dumb things like the pride jersey bans while the NBA continues to grow year after year.
Every league has been emphasizing offense. It sells it's exciting
You think banning the Pride jerseys is kneecapping themselves? Ffs pull your head outta your arse and enjoy the game. The fact that were talking about a revolution in skills and you're biggest gripe is that devout Christians didn't want to wear Gay Pride jerseys is the far bigger issue here. Sports is escapism at its finest. Stop injecting your weird political.agenda into it.
Nice I barely take time to watch hockey but mostly waiting for the Sabres to be good. I had no idea the game has changed this much. This is really well done and eye opening to a casual. Thanks !
Roller hockey been doing this forever. Almost never know who the D man is except for the faceoff constant rotation and confusion for them in the offensive zone. With so many NhL players joining roller tournaments it’s not surprising to see if way more in The league especially all the insane dangles.
haha, I had the same thought "sounds like standard inline" - ice hockey also catching on when it coms to the PK, and "don't dump it unless you have to"
Love you channel man good stuff, you'd make a great hockey coach.
I really like these type of thoughtful hockey videos
This is such a well-done video, it could be mistaken as a in-game segment like HNIC's Coach's Corner.
Why don't you ask this question to someone else on the internet - like goalie coaches who are fully aware of the fact that they kept shrinking the goalie gear. Of course that's going to let more goals in Duh? 🙄
Nice analysis. Subscriber earned!
Wow, great explanation. I didn't realize the D was going so low so frequently
This is one of your best videos. Well done!
Excellent video!
All thanks to Erik Karlsson. Transformed the position like no one else has since Bobby Orr.
I'm always shocked when I see people discuss this without mentioning Karlsson. He's the main reason the position has changed, and we're really seeing the effects on young defensemen who grew up watching him (or their coaches did). Makar was 13 the season Karlsson won his first Norris, Hughes was 12.
As a hockey fan who loves to watch the game but doesn't fully understand the intricacies - these videos are pure gold! 💯
Love your channel.
i was just thinking the other day about Orr we were so impressed by his style of play. and after watching Makar and Hughes in BC., can't believe it has taken this long to realize the importance of this type of player. it may cause man on man to completely go away in the D-zone. Still Thow got to have big unmovable mean ass dudes like in Vegas or Carolina
Great content man.
Dude honestly I love your videos. By far the best hockey KZhead out there.
Great video dude
Thanks for this video this is actually super interesting
Great video very dense not too long love it
These vids are fantastic
Nice summary of the uptick in offense in the NHL. However, this is exactly how the Oilers of the 1980's won so many Stanley Cups. When they gained control of the puck, five players went up the ice, including, of course #99, but also Paul Coffey, Glen Anderson, Mark Messier, Jari Kurrie, etc. That was unheard of at the time. Hockey coaches always emphasized two-way hockey: offense and defense. But not Glen Sather. He was 100% attacked minded. But the key to making this style of play effective was a GK who could stop alot of breakaways. Fortunately, the Oilers had Grant Fuhr, who was easily the most underrated GK in NHL history. The Oilers could have never achieved their success and implemented their style without Grant between the pipes (#99 admits this too). Often, he was the only player on the ice playing defense for the Oilers. The result is that he gave up 4 goals a game, but they scored 5 goals a game. And they did it with the two-line pass rule. Just imagine how many goals #99 would have scored if him and his teammates were allowed to make passes across two lines. Wayne might have scored over 1000 goals. But again, it's a nice summary of where the game is now. And will likely go in the future.
I'm 52, been watching the NHL for most of my life. For the first 40(ish) it wasn't great tbh. So it's nice to see the skill be elevated to where it should be! Also how is Makar making less money than Nurse lol?! #GoLeafsGo
He & MacKinnon both elected to not take Max deals in their first extensions to build the roster. Toronto’s management is at a loss for words… hahaha
@@thewat3rcompanytruth😂
To this point, in the past (for us oldies) we used to see this in limited fashion. ie- 80's Oliers teams with Coffey and when the Av's would load up the PP with Ozolinsh, Foresberg, Sakic, Kamensky, and that mule Deadmarsh in front. NJ used to have this with Niedermeyer, as well. It is great see this becoming more wide spread.
Nurse got the big contract because Defensemen seem to be allergic to The Oliers.
Nurse is being paid because he took less money with the RFA extensions. Had Edmonton signed him to 8 years earlier he'd be paid in the $6m mark
Another rule change that contributed to the modern defenseman is the blue lines getting pushed out to 75 feet in 05/06. Created way more room to cycle high zone.
Just bought a book on hockey systems so I can pick up what you’re dropping. Never even heard of a motion offense
Can’t wait to see how Axel Sandin-Pelikka develops for the wings
Originally, passing across two lines was allowed. It was only during the WWII years that the two line pass was made illegal. That was because the young and able age players were off fighting the war and older players were playing instead. They brought in the rule to slow the game down and make skating up and down the ice easier on the older guys.
Great take!
In my 12 year olds writing class they are learning how to write intros. That was a terrific intro. Great hook. You don’t see that kind of good writing with KZhead channels these days.
Recommendation! You should do a video on the crazy touch icing rule that is now gone. I miss seeing players go absolutely FULL SPEED when trying to touch the puck. It was brutal sometimes
something that has stuck with me was Tucka Rask on Spittin Chicklets saying that its harder to read the puck as a Goalie.
You can thank Anatoly Tarasov for this style of shifting offence. He used chess as an example for the Red Army hockey team on how to cycle and confuse the opposition. Tarasov was DECADES ahead of his time but sadly fell victim to the corruption of the kremlin.
Yet by some mystery RHD Axel Sandin Pellikka was mostly overlooked in the top 15 of the 2023 draft. He fits this narrative all too well, plus he has a dangerous mid range shot from the circles for an added area of expertise. Some say he is raw but really stepped it up in the SHL this season, way past expectattions. In 30 less games already 10 points from Victor Hedman's SHL season record of 22 points for a defenseman.
The motion offense is mostly reserved for the power play though. It's very rarely used outside of that. And while it's effective in creating more legitimate scoring chances on the power play it's also very effective in creating scoring chances for the other team. The vast majority of scoring chances these days are odd man breaks when the offense gives the puck away, and a huge portion of those happen because there are forwards on the point when those giveaways happen.
This is what I was wondering. How do teams plan for the inevitable turnover? The transition defense conundrum is the same for soccer, hockey, and Rocket League. Protect middle, force wide, wait for help?
Your videos are the best.
those 2 are thou exceptionell. Karlsson also being there...
what's the background music?
I had a weird prospective I played all through the mid 90’s and hung it up in 2004 after injuries. Well I didn’t handle that well and couldn’t even watch hockey. So I took a decade off and when I came back to watch NHL I could barely understand what I was watching. The puck can be shot so fast off the stick the players are so much faster I mean everything was different. It was kinda of a unique situation skipping 10 years ahead in the game and just mind blowing.
brilliant video
Great analysis. This seems like an offense cycling progression partially related to the Soviet teams with all 5 in motion to keep possession rather than dumping to create zone pressure and 3 man cycling. Players and coaches need to have more situational awareness to adjust between systems, as needed. D men generally have to have better puck handling skills and mobility. Can you do one of these for the developments in hitting?
And they shrunk the size of goalies' gear 🤔
Great video
Motion offensive has been around in lacrosse forever, about time hockey started using it
I wonder how this is affecting goalie training or even numbers in terms of new tendies. I got the sense that, I don't know, it's a bit rough out there for them given the changes in the game? Regular 7-8--goal games matches lately. I think, given the number of matches and goals per season, nearly two-tenths of a degree is notable from 2019. And power play chances (down) and power play conversion (uo) especially. Thank you for the interesting video! Keep them coming! On the side, there's this music piece right at the beginning that sounded really nice. Are ya'll able to share it?
OH wait no i got it
he forgot to say that goalie gear shrunk.
Outstanding analysis and explanation. Thanks
Before the rule change and since the introduction of the forward pass, a pass could originate from behind the blue line and be collected across the centre line as long as the recipient crossed the centre line after the puck did.
True - which is why receiving a pass across two lines was called offside - the same idea as going over the blue line ahead of the puck. It wasn't only behind blue across center, it was also behind center across blue.
arguably ice hockey doing what inline hockey has been doing for many years (I'm being a bit silly, it was done before all over the place, but it wasn't widelye recognised). Movement and puck possession being the standard words, rather than "dump and chase" and "wingers, centres, D, stay on your lane/blue line". I think an argument could be made for greater exposure to "big ice" game, more like Europe. That motion offense has been a staple of Czech hockey (for example) for over 20 years - it is beautiful to watch, and devastating to play against.
I remember like 10 years ago I had a few coaches that were really pushing this idea. As a very defensive dman I wasn't to keen on the change, but the amount of plays it opened up was unbelievable. Imo, its simply better than traditional 3 down 2 up 'cycle' and it's pretty sweet seeing it a lo more in the pros
I was a member of the Bobby Orr fan club. I guess everybody didn't get those newsletters.
This video made me subscribe.
Kinda like the lacrosse style of rotation with the Attack and midfielders
Thank you for breaking down the game.
Best hockey blog!
unreal analysis
I was thinking about this today. Not only we've seen a crop of great talent shape the NHL in the past few years, specially on defense and everybody's skating abilities, but also teams are looking to roll 4 lines instead of putting everyone in the first 2 lines and have maybe a shutdown 3rd line and an useless/fighting 4th line. Everyone has to be much better to play a 4th line role and every line has a little way of looking to score. This has started before the wave of talent that you talk about, and is the responsible for making enforcers obsolete. I think it's the best thing that's happened to hockey and is essentially what allowed skilled players to be more deployed in all positions.
You make me a smarter hockey enjoyer, thank you
lot of similarity's to football (soccer) rules allowing smaller more technical players to thrive with protection.. Football changed with the pass back rule meaning defenders had to be more comfortable on the ball then in previous generations, like with hockey the defensive players are utilised in build up play and as offensive threats from deeper positions. My takeaway is mainly rules are designed mainly for offensive players and almost always favour goal scoring over anything else. So it makes logical sense that defenders move from static single focused role of defending and passing the ball/puck to dynamic players with far more responsibility with regards to helping the team score.
Now the real question, how do you stop it? My only real hypothesis is zone, almost PK like, but that feels like a default. Box +1 seems to be like the most viable option tho. In terms of stopping those long breakouts, I wonder how long it will be until a flat 2-3 might be played with a shortened gap. Hang one forward high on the pressure and encourage your D to jump the angle when that breakout pass comes in quick transition. But even then its too quick, not really how you counter a counter attack. Unless you're fast AND can play physically. Might we see a new age of big talented and fast power forwards in the NHL?
I mean what's the problem with just doing pure man on man, you need higher endurance skaters sure but I think its manageable
That cycle is how you breeak man on man, by creating movement and confusion@@bruce4139
The Soviet teams did this years ago...I remember watching them play Canada in the 70's and it was the first thing I noticed was that they all seemed to be basically interchangeable in terms of position...Canada struggled with it in the 72 summit series...they had never seen anything like it.
The USSR hockey team was really ahead of its time with their use of all 5 skaters to breakout and create offense.
Finally someone who doesn´t talk 100/mph like most youtubers, cheers!
Personally I always preferred the much more physical and intense pre-lockout NHL, but the worst hockey invention of that time gotta be the trapezoid. This took away such a fine apsect from the game completely.
What and how are team defences modifying to try and stop this new motion style offence?
Good analysis, one thing I want to mention is that this is, interestingly enough, an older tactic in it's own right. It was developed and perfected by the Russian international team way back when as a way to overcome the much much more physical playstyle by the much bigger Canadians. Later, it was used by the Red Wings of the 90s during their "Russian 5" era. The concept, IIRC, has been referred to as "Total Hockey". It ended up not catching on so much in the NHL, because the 2 line pass rule inhibited it, and unless you were had an all all-star team like the Red Wings dynasty, you just didn't have enough talent to do it consistently. Now, with the line pass being nothing but a relic and there being more talent than ever, it's been awesome watching it become the dominant playstyle in the NHL. And the game has never been better for it!
You had me at Boston and Colorado but you lost me at Toronto and Buffalo... Jk, very much enjoyed this video :)