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Prolongations: DGs propose adding a stopwatch (like in the NBA)

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Prolongations: DGs propose adding a stopwatch (like in the NBA)

I don’t know about you, but personally, I love the 3-on-3 overtime format. It provides a good dose of spectacle, the best offensive players have room to show off their talents, and there’s non-stop action.

I guess it’s even nicer to enjoy overtime when you’ve got the master of it, Cole Caufield, in your favorite team’s uniform.

That said, even if the format is really interesting, there are still some problems. Too often, we see the guys going around in circles to keep possession of the puck and wear down the opposing team, but this also has the effect of slowing down the pace of the game.

And clearly, the league wants to tackle this problem. At the GMs’ meeting in Toronto, they floated a few ideas to try and spice up 3-on-3 play. The idea of not allowing guys to get back behind the red line was raised, but it was the idea of a shot clock that attracted the most attention.

In fact, the concept would resemble the famous shot clock seen in the NBA today: once in possession of the puck, a team would have a certain number of seconds to attempt a shot, failing which it would lose possession.

I imagine there would be a face-off in the event of the shot clock running out, because you can’t just give the disc back to the other team like you can give the ball back to the other team in basketball.

There are some details to be worked out, clearly, but I confess I’m not completely against the idea. I still think the red line idea is the best way to preserve the essence of the sport, but imagine the tension if, with a second or two left on the clock, a maverick like Caufield found himself in possession of the puck and had to take a shot.

It’d be a bit of a build-up and a hell of a sense of urgency, anyway.

In short, we’ll see if the idea catches on, but across the league, there seems to be a real desire to find a way to improve the 3-on-3 spectacle, which is already far from bad. We’ll keep an eye on it.


In Brief

– ÉCJ 2018: sanctions have been handed down to the players concerned, but an appeal process has been set in motion.

– It’s the talk of the town.

– He’s making a habit of it.

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