When did handedness become so important?

[Siamese Dream]

Doesn't matter so much for forwards but definitely matters a great deal on defense.

An situation:

You're right handed on the right point, puck gets rimmed round the boards, you can easily stop it on your forehand and immediately make a play. Swap the roles around, if you're left handed you have to turn and stop the puck with your backhand which is more difficult as you have less strength, you then have to either turn around to take a shot or make a pass, or you make a weak backhand pass back down the boards if you don't have time to do that.

Also making plays in the defensive zone has been mentioned. If you're on the side of the ice that matches your handedness, it is much easier to make a pass up to the forwards. It's also easier for the D to make a D-to-D pass to each other when they're both playing on the correct side. The right handed player on the right side of the ice can quickly make a forehand pass to his partner, who can then take the puck on his forehand. If the left handed player is on the right side of the ice he either has to make a backhand pass or turn to pass the puck to his partner.

On the powerplay the D typically line up on the opposite side of the ice in the offensive zone so they can take one-timers.

 

[SmellOfVictory]

It adds quite a bit of difficulty when playing pucks on the backhand and making passes that you don't typcally make on the other side of the ice. It is important, and has always been important.

Depends on the player. Some of them seem to excel on the opposite side to their handedness, forwards and defensemen alike.

 

[deckercky]

Doesn't matter so much for forwards but definitely matters a great deal on defense.

An situation:

You're right handed on the right point, puck gets rimmed round the boards, you can easily stop it on your forehand and immediately make a play. Swap the roles around, if you're left handed you have to turn and stop the puck with your backhand which is more difficult as you have less strength, you then have to either turn around to take a shot or make a pass, or you make a weak backhand pass back down the boards if you don't have time to do that.

Same thing from the defensive end with a breakout pass. I'd say it's generally more important in the defensive zone, since on an otherwise equal player, it can be the difference between a breakout pass and getting hemmed in.

 

[Raym11]

ive always been taught/assumed growing up playing hockey that it was for boardplay mainly


on defense for being on your forehand receiving a puck around the boards in the o-zone or clear down the boards in your own zone as strong as possible


I think its a bit out-dated for Forwards, its just for having your forehand for a shot when skating down the ice, but most players now are able to pivot a lot better as well as have more velocity on their backhanders/one time plays because of equipment compared to 20+ years ago.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Doesn't matter so much for forwards but definitely matters a great deal on defense.

An situation:

You're right handed on the right point, puck gets rimmed round the boards, you can easily stop it on your forehand and immediately make a play. Swap the roles around, if you're left handed you have to turn and stop the puck with your backhand which is more difficult as you have less strength, you then have to either turn around to take a shot or make a pass, or you make a weak backhand pass back down the boards if you don't have time to do that.

Also making plays in the defensive zone has been mentioned. If you're on the side of the ice that matches your handedness, it is much easier to make a pass up to the forwards. It's also easier for the D to make a D-to-D pass to each other when they're both playing on the correct side. The right handed player on the right side of the ice can quickly make a forehand pass to his partner, who can then take the puck on his forehand. If the left handed player is on the right side of the ice he either has to make a backhand pass or turn to pass the puck to his partner.

On the powerplay the D typically line up on the opposite side of the ice in the offensive zone so they can take one-timers.

In addition to what everyone else has said, it also keeps your front to the play rather than your back. Better for vision but also safer if you're in the D-zone.

Kings have subscribed to this theory since DL has been here. Martinez is a very good d-man at swapping both sides due to his mobility but lots of our other d-men really struggle with that when someone is out.

I think it's just become a big deal as the media has become more aware of it or something. Righties are much more common now than they used to be amongst Canadians anyway, at least in my recollection, don't have the data to back that up.

 

[Samuel Culper III]

Because much to the chagrin of the great many older fans who don't want to admit that the game is getting faster and tighter every single year due to the increasing skill floor in the league (as in guys who struggle to make it beyond being AHL scorers are talented enough to have been top six players in past decades) more and more emphasis is being placed on systems and nuances that were previously not as necessary to examine. As the speed of the game continues to increase and less and less space exists on the ice increasingly minute details become relevant when they were previously unimportant, or luxuries at best.

A good example of this is the desire to have LHD on the left side and RHD on the right side (not talking about the PP where you'll see them switch to open up one timers) so that, in their own end, the defenders will always have their sticks facing the boards. This factors into where their stick is positioned when trying to keep opposing players to the outside (you want your stick to be on the outside as well, not facing the center of the ice), the way that they pick up pucks along the boards and where the puck is positioned when looking to move the puck out of the zone. A lefty on the right side has his stick facing the middle of the ice. This is more dangerous than if it were facing the boards (if he were to fan or lose the puck) and makes it more difficult to effectively play the puck up the boards (rather than up the middle, which we all know is unfavorable).

With how little time and space exists in the game today, little things like being able to pick up the puck on your forehand along the boards or being able to go up the boards more easily on your forehand when clearing the puck (especially on the PK) are more relevant than ever. Coaches are examining and dissecting every facet of the game to try and find an edge wherever they can.

 

[hockeyfanOU812]

Since NHL 94, when shooting slapshots you needed to attack from the opposite side of the rink and aim for the far corner.

 

[Brodeur]

I wish I had saved this article from 10+ years ago about Scott Niedermayer. Article detailed the finer points of playing on your off side as a defender. Several NHLers were quoted on how that wasn't a trivial thing and that having a guy like Niedermayer who could do it (and play big minutes) was a bonus.

When the Devils stumbled out of the gates in the 2010-11 season, that aspect seemed to be completely missed by the media. Everybody wanted to pile on Kovalchuk or blame the Parise injury. But here was the Devils defense under John MacLean:

Andy Greene - LH
Henrik Tallinder - LH
Anton Volchenkov - LH
Bryce Salvador - LH
Colin White - LH
Mark Fraser - LH
Anssi Salmela - LH
Matt Taormina - LH
Alex Urbom - LH
Matt Corrente - RH
Tyler Eckford - LH
Olivier Magnan - LH
Mark Fayne - RH

The Devils had a lefty dominant blue line to start with, and then all the callups seemed to be LH as well, while also being guys not particularly equipped to play on the right side. It's funny looking back at it that Mark Fayne was like 13th on the depth chart. But almost the sheer fact that he was RH led him to stick in the lineup.

The following offseason, the Devils targeted RHD. They drafted Larsson, brought in Anton Stralman as a tryout, traded for Kurtis Foster/Marek Zidlicky.

 

[HunterSThompson]

Since sticks were curved and before that.

It is important for two people: the players and the team.

Players

Players usually end up playing on their strong side. It has been that way for awhile. This places the players backhand toward the boards. This makes it easier to make and receive passes, defend rushes, and grind along the boards. Players that play the "off" side as well as they do the other side are relatively rare, and the circumstance is usually left to players with the most skill. Naturally players have ended up this way for awhile, especially more increasingly with more right handed players.

Teams

Teams like left/right hand balance. This isn't necessarily anything new, if only because players couldn't perform as well on their off-side. Defense is the most important due to the lack of high-level puck handling skill usually found on the back-end. A team may be fine with a guy playing his off-side if he does it adequately, but in some cases it may be cheaper and better to get a guy that may not be quite as good, but naturally plays the side you need. This is evermore important in the salary cap era.

What about Centers?

Generally, they may want their Centers to have the opposite handedness as the top shooter or puck carrier on his line, so that their forehands face each other. Furthermore, they want capable faceoff men of both left and right handedness in their lineups for defensive zone faceoffs. In some cases, they like both on each line to take defensive zone faceoffs. Lefties would take it in the left corner, and righties in the right corner to win the puck to the boards instead of the net.

Does PP matter?

PP definitely depends on the scheme and can be built around guys both ways. Generally they want guys on their off-side but it depends on the scheme. Shooters to open up for one-timers and passers for the ability to move up and out of pressure while keeping the defenders in front of them.

 

[AvsGuy]

Because much to the chagrin of the great many older fans who don't want to admit that the game is getting faster and tighter every single year due to the increasing skill floor in the league (as in guys who struggle to make it beyond being AHL scorers are talented enough to have been top six players in past decades) more and more emphasis is being placed on systems and nuances that were previously not as necessary to examine. As the speed of the game continues to increase and less and less space exists on the ice increasingly minute details become relevant when they were previously unimportant, or luxuries at best.

A good example of this is the desire to have LHD on the left side and RHD on the right side (not talking about the PP where you'll see them switch to open up one timers) so that, in their own end, the defenders will always have their sticks facing the boards. This factors into where their stick is positioned when trying to keep opposing players to the outside (you want your stick to be on the outside as well, not facing the center of the ice), the way that they pick up pucks along the boards and where the puck is positioned when looking to move the puck out of the zone. A lefty on the right side has his stick facing the middle of the ice. This is more dangerous than if it were facing the boards (if he were to fan or lose the puck) and makes it more difficult to effectively play the puck up the boards (rather than up the middle, which we all know is unfavorable).

With how little time and space exists in the game today, little things like being able to pick up the puck on your forehand along the boards or being able to go up the boards more easily on your forehand when clearing the puck (especially on the PK) are more relevant than ever. Coaches are examining and dissecting every facet of the game to try and find an edge wherever they can.

Good post!

 

[torlev*]

It's less important on the PP I think than in the D zone. I think the goal is to, if everyone is in the right position, to be able to get the puck behind the net on your strong hand so you can start a breakout with a forehand pass rather than a backhand. At least, that's the biggest impact I've seen with the Lightning - who I feel are a really good breakout team.

Yzerman pays a lot of attention to it with wingers, too. The only guy who regularly plays his off-wing is Kucherov.

Huh? You ever played d?

Coming out on your offside, I find it just as easy to switch your forehand and get the breakout pass going. In fact, because of the way your stick is up ice more than you would on your forehand, its actually easier to make the pass. Granted if the forward is in the right place they both should be easy.

 

[torlev*]

ive always been taught/assumed growing up playing hockey that it was for boardplay mainly


on defense for being on your forehand receiving a puck around the boards in the o-zone or clear down the boards in your own zone as strong as possible


I think its a bit out-dated for Forwards, its just for having your forehand for a shot when skating down the ice, but most players now are able to pivot a lot better as well as have more velocity on their backhanders/one time plays because of equipment compared to 20+ years ago.

It is nearly completely for board play. But if you're good at digging it out with your backhand and getting it to your forehand, the puck is toward the centre of the ice and you have more ice and options to work with. It also helps havingore ice if your a dman who shoots a lot.

Its all personal.

 

[GerbeSonOfGloin]

Having followed the NHL for upwards of 15 years now, I don't remember when the direction a player shoots became so relevant to their position - particularly on defense. It seems status quo now for a player's value to a team to be based on whether that team needs RHD or LHD, and I'm not sure when or why this became a thing. Obviously it affects play from the point, especially on the power play, but even that doesn't seem as big a determinant to a team's success as it's made out to be on these boards. Meanwhile, there are LWs who shoot right, and RWs who shoot left, and that never seems to matter.

If you had a defense made up of 6 really good right-handed defensemen, would anyone care that none of them shoot left?

Has the number of right-handed shots truly gone up compared to era past? If it indeed has as I suspect, I think it's pretty obvious why it's become more important. If virtually all players are LH, then you don't get the benefits of RH on the right side, but neither do any of your competitors, so there is no net competitive disadvantage. When a substantial number of players become RH, the teams that can ice a balanced lineup have an advantage over those who don't.

 

[Brooklanders*]

A lot of guys are playing out of position cuz of necessity.

It doesn't mean they are all good at it.

 

[Ajax1995]

Has the number of right-handed shots truly gone up compared to era past? If it indeed has as I suspect, I think it's pretty obvious why it's become more important. If virtually all players are LH, then you don't get the benefits of RH on the right side, but neither do any of your competitors, so there is no net competitive disadvantage. When a substantial number of players become RH, the teams that can ice a balanced lineup have an advantage over those who don't.

Ding, ding, ding.

Back in the day if you had one RD you were fairly lucky and there were plenty of teams that had none.

The questions is why are there so many more right shots than there used to be in the NHL?

 

[tarheelhockey]

Because much to the chagrin of the great many older fans who don't want to admit that the game is getting faster and tighter every single year due to the increasing skill floor in the league (as in guys who struggle to make it beyond being AHL scorers are talented enough to have been top six players in past decades) more and more emphasis is being placed on systems and nuances that were previously not as necessary to examine. As the speed of the game continues to increase and less and less space exists on the ice increasingly minute details become relevant when they were previously unimportant, or luxuries at best.

I'm sorry, but this is a bunch of nonsense.

This diagram illustrates the left wing lock, which was developed by the Czechs in the early 1970s and imported to the NHL through Scotty Bowman. A lot of fans remember it as the favored defensive system of the 1990s Red Wings, but Bowman was coaching similar traps in Montreal in the 1970s.

Focus on the blue box, where the LW pounces on the defender's clearing attempt. First visualize the LW as left-handed -- now visualize him as right-handed. See the difference? If he's left-handed, he is on his forehand as the puck comes to him. His angle of attack on the puck is such that he can force the defender to either put the puck off the glass and into the neutral zone to be gathered by his defenseman. It won't work if he's right-handed. This system is what made the modestly-talented Steve Shutt a 60-goal scorer under Bowman.

Coaching emphasis on handedness goes much further back than that, though. Maurice Richard started as a left-handed LW, but was moved to his off-wing for the exact same reasons that Ovechkin has mostly played as a right-handed LW. That, in turn, influences who gets to play in the top center position next to those superstars. Those aren't arbitrary decisions, in any era.

Faceoff plays rely almost entirely on the handedness of the center. Power play schemes and breakout patterns rely heavily on the handedness of the defensemen. Boardwork, offensive zone pinching, gap control are all influenced by handedness.

Coaches have been eating, sleeping and breathing hockey every day for the past 100 years. It didn't take the most recent generation to make them pay close attention to this elementary aspect of the game...

 

[txpd]

adam oates is ocd about handedness. largely its that in the d zone a player on his off side had his back to the blue line and his backhand to the blue line against the boards

 

[txpd]

Ding, ding, ding.

Back in the day if you had one RD you were fairly lucky and there were plenty of teams that had none.

The questions is why are there so many more right shots than there used to be in the NHL?

Canadians learn to carry a stick one handed with the dominant hand on top. so the majority right hand population are left shots.

Americans do it the other way. right handed people swing a baseball bat right handed. were they to hold the bat like Canadians hold the stick they would all swing left handed. its the mixture of the two cultures that have created more right handed shooters in hockey. many right shots now are actually right handed

 

[Samuel Culper III]

I'm sorry, but this is a bunch of nonsense.

This diagram illustrates the left wing lock, which was developed by the Czechs in the early 1970s and imported to the NHL through Scotty Bowman. A lot of fans remember it as the favored defensive system of the 1990s Red Wings, but Bowman was coaching similar traps in Montreal in the 1970s.

Focus on the blue box, where the LW pounces on the defender's clearing attempt. First visualize the LW as left-handed -- now visualize him as right-handed. See the difference? If he's left-handed, he is on his forehand as the puck comes to him. His angle of attack on the puck is such that he can force the defender to either put the puck off the glass and into the neutral zone to be gathered by his defenseman. It won't work if he's right-handed. This system is what made the modestly-talented Steve Shutt a 60-goal scorer under Bowman.

Coaching emphasis on handedness goes much further back than that, though. Maurice Richard started as a left-handed LW, but was moved to his off-wing for the exact same reasons that Ovechkin has mostly played as a right-handed LW. That, in turn, influences who gets to play in the top center position next to those superstars. Those aren't arbitrary decisions, in any era.

Faceoff plays rely almost entirely on the handedness of the center. Power play schemes and breakout patterns rely heavily on the handedness of the defensemen. Boardwork, offensive zone pinching, gap control are all influenced by handedness.

Coaches have been eating, sleeping and breathing hockey every day for the past 100 years. It didn't take the most recent generation to make them pay close attention to this elementary aspect of the game...

The left wing lock is not even remotely close to the reason that the handedness of DMEN has become such a point of emphasis today. Nothing in your post is wrong, but my post is also 100% accurate as it pertains to the handedness of dmen and preferring to have them playing their natural sides.

 

[El Nino 22]

All wingers should play their off wing so that they may take more efficient and effective clap bombs. 50 in 07.

 

[Rysto]

All wingers should play their off wing so that they may take more efficient and effective clap bombs. 50 in 07.

Huh? You are aware that Heatley shot left and played the left wing in 07, right?

 

[El Nino 22]

Huh? You are aware that Heatley shot left and played the left wing in 07, right?

So? Not everyone can be Dany Heatley.

 

[Ajax1995]

Canadians learn to carry a stick one handed with the dominant hand on top. so the majority right hand population are left shots.

Americans do it the other way. right handed people swing a baseball bat right handed. were they to hold the bat like Canadians hold the stick they would all swing left handed. its the mixture of the two cultures that have created more right handed shooters in hockey. many right shots now are actually right handed

I don't think it is as easy as saying one group does this and other that. I think it comes down when you start being coached.

If you aren't coached early you grab the stick the way it feels most naturally, which for a right handed person feels more naturaly, right hand low so it is more similar to how you swing a baseball bat or a golf club. I 100% agree that a lot more Americans start screwing around with a hockey stick way before that start being coached by anyone who knows what they are doing and they have already figured out how they feel they want to hold the stick.

 

[tarheelhockey]

The left wing lock is not even remotely close to the reason that the handedness of DMEN has become such a point of emphasis today. Nothing in your post is wrong, but my post is also 100% accurate as it pertains to the handedness of dmen and preferring to have them playing their natural sides.

The fundamental design of the LWL illustrates that this issue was not just noticed, but keyed upon as the primary basis for team strategy upwards of 40 years ago. If coaches were concentrating on getting their forwards in proper-handed position, of course they were doing it with the defensemen as well. They weren't stupid.

The main thing I take issue with is the assertion that this stuff was trivial in the past because it was somehow easier to win hockey games and people didn't need to think as hard about the details of the game.

 

[Samuel Culper III]

The fundamental design of the LWL illustrates that this issue was not just noticed, but keyed upon as the primary basis for team strategy upwards of 40 years ago. If coaches were concentrating on getting their forwards in proper-handed position, of course they were doing it with the defensemen as well. They weren't stupid.

The main thing I take issue with is the assertion that this stuff was trivial in the past because it was somehow easier to win hockey games and people didn't need to think as hard about the details of the game.

The question asked was why it is suddenly becoming a point of much greater emphasis. That is my answer. We've all watched LHD who aren't proficient on the right side but forced to play there due to team needs get hemmed in and turnover the puck. I'm not contending that it's a new discovery but that the reason for the increased emphasis on this detail is the ever increasing speed of the game. Are you really denying that the game is faster than ever?