When did handedness become so important?

[THall4]

When the speed of the game increased so much...to the point that the time it took for a LHD on the right side to take a puck off the wall the opposing forward could close the gap quick enough that there would be potential of turnover or a bad play.

D to D onetimers are almost non-existant.

 

[jpchabby]

When the speed of the game increased so much...to the point that the time it took for a LHD on the right side to take a puck off the wall the opposing forward could close the gap quick enough that there would be potential of turnover or a bad play.

D to D onetimers are almost non-existant.

Not on the PP though

 

[Ogopogo*]

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?

It's not. Teams win Stanley Cups with too many lefties or too many righties. It is a detail that really doesn't matter that much.

 

[SimplySensational]

It shouldn't be really for forwards, or even defenseman.

Oates switched Orlov to a LD and watched him struggle and did nothing.

Trotz for some reason has decided, to convert Burakovsky and Kuznetsov into centers, instead of offwing RWs, and when he puts them on the wing, he put thems on the LW. So he's forcing 2 NHL rookies, to play 2 different positions then their usual.

 

[FinRuutu]

Handedness? At around age 16-17 for me.

Late bloomer.

 

[cujoflutie]

speed definitely plays a factor; in baseball they don't put left handed throwers at 2nd, 3rd, or short stop any more because that extra moment it takes for a lefty to turn their backs could make a difference. Lefty batters enjoy an advantage partially because of the extra split second they can view a right handed pitchers hand as well as the slight head start to first base. In hockey playing the off-side causes a player to have to turn their bodies more often or make one extra move or play on their back hands and all those things take extra time.

defense is interesting because while LHD and RHD are positions on the ice, players are only categorized as D and those two positions are by far the most common for players to be able to play both at even strength.


Dion Phaneuf for instance has seen his game suffer having to play on his other side.