Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community - View Single Post - [News] Habs legends talk about what's wrong with the game

Huntingwhale · 12-04-2015, 06:17 PM

The ''problem'' is, and always will be, coaching. It's a systems game. Coaches like Tippett and Hitchcock don't give 2 hoots how much the average fan pays to see a game. They don't care that people want to be entertained. It's about winning, plain and simple. As much as hockey is about trying to score goals, it's more about preventing them and outsmarting the guy on the other bench. At the end of the day, if they play a boring style game with 20 shots on each side and come out with a 1-0 victory, they have done their job.

We can enlarge the nets, reduce equipment and change all the rules we want. But coaches have, and always will, adapt. If you want to show off the true creativity of the players and increase scoring chances, you're going to have to get rid of coaches who have been around for 20+ years who know how to shut down other teams. Get rid of coaches like Tippet and Hitchcock. No video coaches. No ear pieces on the bench. Stuff like that. Unrealistic in the digital world we live in to implement rules like that, but when you have 5 guys in the press box who can relay messages to the coach about where players should be and how to shut down the other team, it's no wonder games these day don't have much flow..

I posted this video a while back, but it proves my point. Look how many guys behind the scenes have a direct effect on the game just by having access to video, earpieces and replay. It's insane. And all 30 teams do this, each one trying to get the latest and greatest technology to shut the other team down. The head coach is simply the figure head for them all. You got like 10 guys each pumping instructions and information to one another, with the intent of shutting the other team down and finding that ever slight advantage that can be the difference between winning and losing.

To me the issue is the game is over-coached. If a player doesn't follow the coach's instructions, he's benched. Which can mean less ice team, which means potential earning lost down the road. More then ever players are slaves to the coach's style of play. It's not goals the makes hockey exciting. It's more scoring chances. But more scoring chances means more run-and-gun. Which means more potential goals against. And as much as fans love run and gun, coaches despise it.

12-04-2015, 06:17 PM	#11
Huntingwhale Franchise Player Join Date: Sep 2008 Exp:	The ''problem'' is, and always will be, coaching. It's a systems game. Coaches like Tippett and Hitchcock don't give 2 hoots how much the average fan pays to see a game. They don't care that people want to be entertained. It's about winning, plain and simple. As much as hockey is about trying to score goals, it's more about preventing them and outsmarting the guy on the other bench. At the end of the day, if they play a boring style game with 20 shots on each side and come out with a 1-0 victory, they have done their job. We can enlarge the nets, reduce equipment and change all the rules we want. But coaches have, and always will, adapt. If you want to show off the true creativity of the players and increase scoring chances, you're going to have to get rid of coaches who have been around for 20+ years who know how to shut down other teams. Get rid of coaches like Tippet and Hitchcock. No video coaches. No ear pieces on the bench. Stuff like that. Unrealistic in the digital world we live in to implement rules like that, but when you have 5 guys in the press box who can relay messages to the coach about where players should be and how to shut down the other team, it's no wonder games these day don't have much flow.. I posted this video a while back, but it proves my point. Look how many guys behind the scenes have a direct effect on the game just by having access to video, earpieces and replay. It's insane. And all 30 teams do this, each one trying to get the latest and greatest technology to shut the other team down. The head coach is simply the figure head for them all. You got like 10 guys each pumping instructions and information to one another, with the intent of shutting the other team down and finding that ever slight advantage that can be the difference between winning and losing. To me the issue is the game is over-coached. If a player doesn't follow the coach's instructions, he's benched. Which can mean less ice team, which means potential earning lost down the road. More then ever players are slaves to the coach's style of play. It's not goals the makes hockey exciting. It's more scoring chances. But more scoring chances means more run-and-gun. Which means more potential goals against. And as much as fans love run and gun, coaches despise it. Last edited by Huntingwhale; 12-04-2015 at 06:27 PM.