[undercoverbrother]

First off thanks for posting this, I think it is a topic that is worth discussing.

To those that are talking about retro fitting arenas, or building smaller arenas, you are missing the point.

Going to 3 on 3 is a topic in town currently.

Here are my thoughts:

Dynamite (or Timbit) I am all for 3 on 3 cross ice.

Novice, I think you need to start the introduction of full ice. There is talk in Sylvan that there will be a split of some 3 on 3 and full ice. A full season of only 3 on 3 I think would be not be the best, and hope to see a blend of 3 on 3 and 5 on 5.

I think the positives for these young players far out weigh the negatives. One positive is more puck touches. Playing only 3 on 3 in a smaller space allows for more puck touches which increases kids enjoyment, and also increases their stick skills. This increases confidence, which is huge in any sport.

As for the skating, I would suggest the skating skills needed for cross ice 3 on 3 are greater than full ice 5 on 5. There is much more front to back/back to front transitions, and much more stoping/starting in 3 on 3 than in full ice. Most young skaters can skate 200 ft, but they struggle stopping starting and transitioning front to back/back to front.

Another positive is the kids learn to think the game quicker. I see player hold the puck for far too long on full ice, and by that i mean you will see players stand with the puck for 3,4,5-10 secs. This is because it can take that long for the opposition to get to them. In 3 on 3, the distance that a defender has to go to close down the puck carrier is reduced. Players will learn to think the game faster sooner. Also, they will build confidence handling/playing in a crowd, there just isn't the huge expanse of ice to go and hide on.

There is also less space on the ice for the stronger staking player to just lug the puck up the ice. It forces them to see the ice more and pass more. This is a huge positive.

The 3 on 3 game is faster, no face offs, more time is spend actually playing.

My son loves 3 on 3 as a goalie. He has tonnes of work to do and spends very little time watching the play from 200 ft. He is forced to stay focused on the game/puck.

There is the draw back of no off sides, and less positional play. But positional play is easily taught in atom (and during some 5 on 5 novice games) once you have confident players you can teach them pretty quickly. My son complains that he does not have a crease, but this is minor and is out weighed by the positives.