Since the NHL switched to a 3-on-3 format for overtime at the start of the 2015-16 season, fans have enjoyed the fast pace and seemingly never ending back-and-forth play that comes with so much space on the ice.
However, as time has passed, coaching staffs have started to strategize around 3-on-3 and begun implementing their own versions of the trap with the extra frame. Because of that, some fans are now wondering if there’s a way to fix it.
On Friday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Tyler Yaremchuk and Colby Cohen read a viewer suggestion in the YouTube chat on how to make 3-on-3 overtime more exciting.
Tyler Yaremchuk: We have a 3-on-3 idea in the YouTube chat from Mikey that I love: 3-on-3 with no offsides. If you took away offsides and icings, I think it solves the whole thing.
Colby Cohen: You could have one guy hanging and two guys defending. Here’s one thing I’ll say: no matter what we do, if we give it one season, teams will figure out a strategy to make it less enjoyable. That’s what we did with this current version of 3-on-3, that’s what we’ve done with shootouts and the types of shots players are taking, so I have to think more about that. Why do you think it solves the problem?
Tyler Yaremchuk: Because there’s no reason to constantly regroup if you could just launch it down the ice to someone.
Colby Cohen: But don’t you think the point of the regroup is to buy yourself more time and space? I don’t think it’s about going on- or offside, I think it’s when a player starts to feel like all his options are stationary, you go to the neutral zone to try and drag guys out of their spots. Why couldn’t the defensive team just wait?
Tyler Yaremchuk: The problem with boring 3-on-3 overtimes is too much structure. The opposite of structure is chaos, so if you take out icings and offsides, I think you open up more chaos.
You can watch the full segment and the rest of the episode here…
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