Rules Changes?

[ugarte]

everyone on knew who was watching was fed up with the game once it got beyond 2 OTs. The majority of people watching a game are the fans of the teams, bettors, fans of hockey.

bettors were not happy
fans of teams were happy mostly
hockey fans probably didnt watch the whole thing mostly

I remember some four or five OT games in the past with full 5v5 20 minute OT, and those were so dramatic to watch even though it kept me up late into the wee hours of the morning to watch. No idea who teams were, and I wasn't a fan of those particular teams either it was just fascinating.

i'll just say again - we're the weird ones! 7+ periods of hockey, at least 4 of which are scoreless, is not for the casual fan. The hockey fan and purist in me likes the occassional eternal game - especially a long game 7 - but I also am not all that purist and understand why it's bad for business.

[Jim Hyla]

it is inevitably always true that the people with money invested in the game - owners, tv networks, advertisers - spend more time thinking about what people who are hockey-curious but not hockey fans care about than hockey fans do. if you asked those people what you would probably find is that they hate ties. you can put a value judgment on it or on america, but ties are basically anathema to american sports. games that can last forever are also kind of anathema to televised sports. the businesses are bigger than the desires of hardcore fans, and if you think that sucks, well, a lot of things suck when they are ripped from their original environments. the olympics are a festival of sports excellence that is also a grotesque political operation and a pathos factory where the struggles of the athletes get 30x the airtime that the sports themselves do.

3x3 hockey is a different thing than hockey but if the sport is going to treat ties as a bad outcome - something everyone involved financially clearly agrees on - i'd rather have a 3x3 before a shootout instead of proceeding right to the shootout, which is an even more egregious bastardization of the sport than a wide open OT. Also 3x3 is fun.

Much like elections, the political fans drive the primary vote, but a lot more political curious vote in the general election.

If the NHL were only concerned about "hockey fans" we'd probably still have just 6 teams. Sometimes moving to appeal to a wider audience is worthwhile.

[ugarte]

If the NHL were only concerned about "hockey fans" we'd probably still have just 6 teams. Sometimes moving to appeal to a wider audience is worthwhile.

In high school someone told me "the Rangers have 20,000 fans and they all have season tickets."

[osorojo]

Smart money should rush out and start a for - Television 3-on-3 professional hockey league with 10 minute periods - and settle ties with the best of eleven penalty shots. Maybe make the goals bigger too in order to get more scoring. It's what fans come to see?

[George64]

In high school someone told me "the Rangers have 20,000 fans and they all have season tickets."

I don't know when you were in high school, but I graduated in 1960.  My friends and I would catch the subway at 179th Street to the old MSG.  With a GO (General Organization) card, the closest thing to a student ID then, general admission was $1.25.  We'd sit in the second row of the top tier.  The first row was taken by some older guys from New Jersey that would send someone early to "reserve" the first row - who's gonna argue.  Rangers Gump Worsley, Andy Bathgate, Lou Fontinato . . .  Les Canadiens Richard brothers, Jean Beliveau, Jacques Plante, "Boom Boom" Geoffrion . . . Leafs Frank Mahovlich, Tim Horton (now just a donut shop) . . .  Wonderful hockey memories, to be surpassed only by Ned's great teams.

[Larry72]

everyone on knew who was watching was fed up with the game once it got beyond 2 OTs. The majority of people watching a game are the fans of the teams, bettors, fans of hockey.

bettors were not happy
fans of teams were happy mostly
hockey fans probably didnt watch the whole thing mostly

I remember some four or five OT games in the past with full 5v5 20 minute OT, and those were so dramatic to watch even though it kept me up late into the wee hours of the morning to watch. No idea who teams were, and I wasn't a fan of those particular teams either it was just fascinating.

Devils-Sabres in 1994 playoffs game 6 went 4 ot. I wasn't happy with the outcome, but it's one of the games I enjoyed watching the most.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeQaOlz22Fk

Went to that game in Buffalo. Was a very long evening and early morning.

[CU2007]

In high school someone told me "the Rangers have 20,000 fans and they all have season tickets."

I don't know when you were in high school, but I graduated in 1960.  My friends and I would catch the subway at 179th Street to the old MSG.  With a GO (General Organization) card, the closest thing to a student ID then, general admission was $1.25.  We'd sit in the second row of the top tier.  The first row was taken by some older guys from New Jersey that would send someone early to "reserve" the first row - who's gonna argue.  Rangers Gump Worsley, Andy Bathgate, Lou Fontinato . . .  Les Canadiens Richard brothers, Jean Beliveau, Jacques Plante, "Boom Boom" Geoffrion . . . Leafs Frank Mahovlich, Tim Horton (now just a donut shop) . . .  Wonderful hockey memories, to be surpassed only by Ned's great teams.

Good stuff right here.