Modern Hockey Should be 4 on 4

[nturn06]

Just so much more electric and exciting. You want viewers, that will bring them in.

Playing without the Goalie would make it even more electric and exciting, but we would hate that

 

[Silky Johnson]

Get rid of shootouts

No, make it only shootouts. Best of 101.

 

[robertocarlos]

Make the ice bigger.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

I think we should get rid of the boards/glass. Make the entire arena playable and if you score from the upper level, goals are worth 3.

There is nothing more exciting than playoff hockey and that's when it's the most physical and most exciting and the score is lower than it is in the regular season. Get out of here with the nonsense. It's a beautiful game and if you can't appreciate it for what it is, you'll get bored with it at 5v5 too after a few games too.

Stop scrolling, fix your attention span, and then maybe you can appreciate how fantastic this game is.

 

[Snubbed4Vezina]

Don't let Bettman see this thread.

Don't worry, it's Bettman, not Rob Manfred.

 

[Ghost of Murph]

6 on 6 would be better, but with two pucks at once and no offside. Sort of like multiball in pinball. Sure, goalies would end up nervous wrecks, but there would be more scoring, strategy, and players employed. The casuals might be pulled away from WWE and pink hat sales would skyrocket.

 

[TheGreenTBer]

Goalie on Goalie, that's it.

Rick DiPietro dislikes this post

 

[Figgy44]

Let's make it complete chaos. Remove the benches. Put all the players on the ice at once.

Incorporate chess boxing concepts.

Coaches fight at start of game, then tries to manage team after a few shots to the head.

Don't push me.

 

[ItWasJustified]

Yeah I watch hockey for the fourth liners and defenders like Ryan Graves.

The reason to why you have to watch Ryan Graves is that NHL GMs don't like to gamble on European free agents who are in their late 20s early 30s.

 

[MetalheadPenguinsFan]

Stupid idea is stupid.

It’s bad enough they made OT 3 on 3 FFS…

 

[ijuka]

5on5 is fine, just make the rinks wider.

 

[Quinntessential]

The “national” hockey league should actually be a league of national teams. Same 82 game schedule and playoff format except it’s team Canada, USA, etc. best on best of each nation every game.

 

[Grinner]

No,no, hell no

 

[Shareefruck]

No, but they really should acknowledge that 3-on-3 OT has been a failure with this hold onto the puck and wait crap and go back to 4-on-4 OT.

 

[JMCx4]

Goalie on Goalie, that's it.

Interesting idea. But wouldn't the goalies be WAY too tired after 60 minutes of skating (with a possible 5-minute OT, then shootouts tacked on) to feature what ALL hockey fans look forward to most ... the Goalie Fight?

 

[Lshap]

You’re getting a lot of hate for this but it’s a valid idea. In the big picture, hockey has steadily reduced the number of players from 7v7 to today’s 3v3 overtimes. While 5v5 hockey has a strong appeal for a variety of reasons, there is also a completely defensible argument for 4v4 full time. It’s either that or fully enforce the rules so that PPs are much more common and/or teams are forced to open up the flow of offense.

Any appeal to “real hockey” is a red flag for a shallow argument. This is an entertainment industry, not a sacred ritual.


The most recent round of expansion was the perfect opportunity. They could have kept the same number of jobs while shrinking rosters to allow for a more open game.

If we zoom all the way out, it's true that sports rules are made-up and professional leagues are entertainment-for-profit. But when the rules settle long enough they do become sacred, as baked in tradition as anything in our culture. Three strikes, you're out. Five skaters a side. Once upon a time those numbers were arbitrary. Today they're canon. Hockey's been 5-on-5 for over a century, plenty of time for that format to legitimately be called 'real hockey'.

 

[Prettyisland]

There is no change that can be made to get the hyper casual sports fan to tune in. The rinks are basically filled and fans have reasonable access to watch any game they want. Be happy

 

[hangman005]

If we add a very slim layer of water on top of the ice and drop a live cable in it we can make it the most electric.

 

[BruinLVGA]

Just so much more electric and exciting. You want viewers, that will bring them in.

If you want more space for top players to show their skills, you don’t cut the amount of players, you make the rinks bigger as in European size.

 

[Rec T]

While the two Four Nations games have been really good/great, I'm starting to really hate the idea of them if the two week break is going to initiate summertime quality level threads full of inane 'suggestions'...

 

[Roomtemperature]

I say bring back the rover, ban the forward pass and goalies dropping to the ice. Ok so anyone who just out right dismisses it and calls it not hockey can try to argue how changing these things didn't help the game. Or how its just rules we arbitrarily set up and settled on cause we thought it was the best way. Dismissing any major change just cause its not what we do is a facile argument.

Do I think so? IDK might get like lacrosse where there is too much scoring and I just kinda get bored watching a neutral game but I'd like to see examples of a full game of it.

 

[Oilslick941611]

no, god, please no

 

[Figgy44]

no, god, please no

 

[The Gr8 Dane]

I can't believe people rather watch little 5'10 shrimps stickhandle uncontested and dispy doodle around than watch the art of a defenceman closing gaps , playing physical , pinning people , breaking pucks out after recovering them with guys barreling down on them

Some people clearly don't love the sport. And Dmen are so disrespected on here it makes me sick (yes I played defense I am biased).

 

[Oilslick941611]

whats crazy is that scene is almost 20 years old.