Why can't the puck be placed on the ice for faceoffs?

[TrufleShufle]

Honest question. Every fan, from every team seem to get pissed at one point or another when waiting for the ref to "just drop the puck!"

Is there any reason besides, "it's just the way it's always been done," that I am missing about why refs don't just place the puck on the ice, stand up, back away and just blow the whistle?

No more false starts, no more refs getting sticks to the face, no more refs accidently faking out players when they get the shakes.

There really could be something I'm not realizing, but I can't think of a drawback.

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[DearDiary]

Because both players can watch the puck fall and time it to when it hits the ice. Instead of flexing their stick over and over in anticipation of a whistle

 

[TrufleShufle]

Because both players can watch the puck fall and time it to when it hits the ice. Instead of flexing their stick over and over in anticipation of a whistle

That's fair, but aren't they flexing their sticks over and over in anticipation watching the ref hold the puck in his hand?

I get the timing of watching the puck hit the ice, but I believe having the reaction time to react to the whistle would be close enough to the same thing, without all the pre drop antics

 

[danpantz]

Should make them tap sticks 3 times before going for the puck like we used to do in street hockey back in the day

 

[DearDiary]

That's fair, but aren't they flexing their sticks over and over in anticipation watching the ref hold the puck in his hand?

I get the timing of watching the puck hit the ice, but I believe having the reaction time to react to the whistle would be close enough to the same thing, without all the pre drop antics

Pre drop antics, you mean refs not dropping the puck when they see a player trying to cheat? Instead of staring at the linesman moving his hand down, watch what the 2 centers are doing.

 

[TrufleShufle]

Pre drop antics, you mean refs not dropping the puck when they see a player trying to cheat? Instead of staring at the ref moving his hand down, watch what the 2 centers are doing.

That's my point, there is no staring at anything or watching anything. The ref doesn't have to worry about dropping the puck, just looks at the two centers, as soon as they are both set, blows the whistle, game on. That's it. No threesome of "will they won't they" for 3-10 seconds before every faceoff between everyone.

 

[DearDiary]

That's my point, there is no staring at anything or watching anything. The ref doesn't have to worry about dropping the puck, just looks at the two centers, as soon as they are both set, blows the whistle, game on. That's it. No threesome of "will they won't they" for 3-10 seconds before every faceoff between everyone.

You seem to be misunderstanding that every player tries to cheat every faceoff and not get caught. Whether that's body or stick positioning, it's all about cheating not reaction speed or skill. It's the difference between being 45% on faceoffs and 55%. What you're implying would cause more cheating with body positioning, which is the #1 reason why centers get kicked out of faceoffs. Otherwise it would be a 50/50 chance at who reacts to a sound first at a puck on the ice. A puck drop causes less cheating because it's less of a 50/50 chance and more of who reacts 1st to something both players are prepared for and can time. Both methods cause cheating, but your method pushes players to cheat more and result in more players kicked out

 

[Filthy Dangles]

We’ll for starters, the linesman setting the puck and then backing off then waiting to blow the whistle would burn more time than just dropping it, especially if there’s a false start or it’s knocked out of the dot and it has to be set again.

Plus the linesman is also there to police wingers who might be trying to cheat.

 

[TheDawnOfANewTage]

Should make them tap sticks 3 times before going for the puck like we used to do in street hockey back in the day

There was always that one turd who thought the third tap was him tapping the puck ahead. And his name was Mathan NacKinnon.

 

[TrufleShufle]

You seem to be misunderstanding that every player tries to cheat every faceoff and not get caught. Whether that's body or stick positioning, it's all about cheating not reaction speed or skill. It's the difference between being 45% on faceoffs and 55%. What you're implying would cause more cheating with body positioning, which is the #1 reason why centers get kicked out of faceoffs. Otherwise it would be a 50/50 chance at who reacts to a sound first at a puck on the ice. A puck drop causes less cheating because it's less of a 50/50 chance and more of who reacts 1st to something both players are prepared for and can time. Both methods cause cheating, but your method pushes players to cheat more and result in more players kicked out

Players get kicked out of faceoffs from moving forward with their stick before the puck is dropped because the ref is moving his hand with the puck in it. How could a puck not moving, with two guys who need to put their feet and stick in certain spot until they hear a sound cause cheating more than someone holding it and then watching for the half second after they drop it until it hits the ice to see if either guy moves?

 

[TrufleShufle]

We’ll for starters, the linesman setting the puck and then backing off then waiting to blow the whistle would burn more time than just dropping it, especially if there’s a false start or it’s knocked out of the dot and it has to be set again.

Plus the linesman is also there to police wingers who might be trying to cheat.

How? The ref skates to the middle and looks around barks orders and points fingers and then goes into the whole "ok I'm about to drop the puck" thing until the play hopefully starts. The ref can skate over, put the puck on the dot and just stand up and look around, actually giving him a better look at the wingers and then just blow the whistle when everyone is ready.

I'm not advocating for a change, because I really feel like I'm missing something, but all the reasoning I've gotten so far seems to be pointless and not solved by the way it's done now.

 

[Negan4Coach]

Because they would literally tear the ref's arm off? Not like that'd be a bad thing

 

[DearDiary]

Players get kicked out of faceoffs from moving forward with their stick before the puck is dropped because the ref is moving his hand with the puck in it. How could a puck not moving, with two guys who need to put their feet and stick in certain spot until they hear a sound cause cheating more than someone holding it and then watching for the half second after they drop it until it hits the ice to see if either guy moves?

The majority of faceoff violations are wingers jumping forward or a center positioning themselves to jump forward after a faceoff win. In other words, cheating for what happens after the faceoff, not to get the puck 1st. Moving their stick forward to get an edge happens in low level leagues

 

[TrufleShufle]

The majority of faceoff violations are wingers jumping forward or a center positioning themselves to jump forward after a faceoff win. In other words, cheating for what happens after the faceoff, not to get the puck 1st. Moving their stick forward to get an edge happens in low level leagues

So are you defending what I'm saying? I don't understand.

A ref blowing the whistle, anything that happen after doesn't matter. A ref holding a puck in his hand slowly raising it up and down until he drops it and calling a redo on any one who moves before it hits the ice.

Again, not advocating for change, but you are convincing me the NHL should look into it.

 

[DearDiary]

So are you defending what I'm saying? I don't understand.

A ref blowing the whistle, anything that happen after doesn't matter. A ref holding a puck in his hand slowly raising it up and down until he drops it and calling a redo on any one who moves before it hits the ice.

Again, not advocating for change, but you are convincing me the NHL should look into it.

Linesmen do not slowly move the puck up and down if all players are in a legal position. If everything is fine, they will tell everyone they're dropping the puck and do it e.g. "Get ready... and... go!". They don't try and trick players like you're suggesting

 

[TrufleShufle]

Linesmen do not slowly move the puck up and down if all players are in a legal position. If everything is fine, they will tell everyone they're dropping the puck and do it e.g. "Get ready... and... go!". They don't try and trick players like you're suggesting

Never once suggested the refs are "trying to trick the players," as far as I know.....

But once again, you have offered nothing that can't be done by putting the puck on the dot.

 

[T-Funk]

I only watch hockey for refs showboating and I love it. Keep these insignificant players in their place and let the zebras do their jobs to entertain the fans.

 

[PunchImlach is Alive]

I only watch hockey for refs showboating and I love it. Keep these insignificant players in their place and let the zebras do their jobs to entertain the fans.

Totally agree. We are in the golden era of refereeing in the NHL and "hockey fans" are complaining.

 

[Matt Ress]

They should play the game inside a plastic bubble over the ice and have the puck pop up through a hole. It should cost $1 in quarters to attend the game.

 

[JoeGarelli]

You seem to not know the protocol for a face off. Most draws you are talking about are dropped by a linesman.

The players have some obligation not to cheat. The wingers are supposed to out of the circle, and on their side of the hash marks. The faceoffs aren't going to be perfect, but they don't want a team gaining an unfair advantage.

The centers are supposed to be square, they need to stay back. They are supposed to have their stick touch the ice.. The defensive center has to put his stick on the ice first, and then the offensive player.

So linesman blows whistle at the end of the line change, it's now time to drop the puck. It is linesman job to ensure a fair faceoff. Centers and wingers will always try to cheat. For centers perhaps it is not putting their stick on the ice, perhaps it is not being so square, perhaps it is they come in too far.

Sometimes it takes a second or two for the players to set and not being cheating to get the puck down. Sometimes linesman communicate warnings. Sometimes players do not want to listen.

This has nothing to do with the linesman stealing the show or wanting the spotlight. They are trying to conduct a fair faceoff. Faceoffs are important and determine puck possession.

And the one thing we don't hear on a regular basis is the communication between the linesman and the centers.

Fans who want the "ref to just drop the puck" are ignorant of the nuances of a faceoff. Slight cheating can lead to an advantage, and eventual draw win and possession. These are the same fans who yell "shoot the puck"

 

[ICanMotteBelieveIt]

Because they would literally tear the ref's arm off? Not like that'd be a bad thing

I'm all for it.

 

[SimpleJack]

It’s very slippery out there on that ice, it might slide away too quickly.

 

[TheDawnOfANewTage]

It’s very slippery out there on that ice, it might slide away too quickly.

Thank you, SimpleJack. I’ve always heard announcers say the ice is tilted- now I see why that matters.

OP- I think you’re gonna get a lot of answers, but ultimately it’s just tradition/how things have always been done. It’s a different challenge, to a very small degree, and while your argument has some benefits.. meh, not a big enough problem for most people.

 

[kaiser matias]

When hockey was first played that was how it was done: the ref would place the puck on the ice. However that changed due to players trying to be quick and go for it, which meant the ref's hands would be hit with sticks, leading to injury. To avoid that they started to drop the puck, leading to the practice of today.

 

[TGWL]

With the puck on the dot and 2 players trying to win a faceoff, you'll hardly see clean wins anymore. It's a lot easier to hit/protect a non-moving puck. Wingers will have to help out a lot more and you'll probably have injuries with players fighting in that area a lot longer, trying to win a loose puck.