Image via WikipediaNext week the NHL School will have another Research, Development and Orientation Camp so they can test potential rule changes, unfortunately there will be many of the same crappy rules the NCAA Division I ice hockey committee tried to ram down our throats last summer. A few of the things I have noticed is that NHL wants to experiment with during their RDO camp; the NHL in their infinite wisdom wants to try the horrible No icing permitted while shorthanded, this is that rule where a team that is on penalty kill can’t ice the puck. The genius that came up with this rule should be rebuked and publicly scorned and the NHL should not enact this rule. The NHL also wants to go to a no-touch icing which is an awesome idea, because it would cut down on the amount of injuries that are suffered when two players rush to the end boards to contest an icing.
On the flip side, the NHL wants to experiment with the Hybrid icing rule as well. As college hockey fans saw last season there appeared to be no consistency in how that rule was called, you can only hope that the NHL officials can get that rule right if they decided to use it. Link to the Story on NHL.COM
Some of the rules that are being proposed
• No-touch icing
• No line change for team committing an offside
• Faceoff variations (penalty line for center committing an infraction; all faceoffs in circles; same linesman drops puck for all faceoffs)
• No icing permitted while shorthanded
• Verification line (additional line behind the goal line)
• Overtime variation (four minutes of 4-on-4 followed by three minutes of 3-on-3)
• Shootout variation (5-man shootout precedes sudden-death format)
• Shallow-back nets
• After offside, faceoff goes back to offending team's end
• Faceoff variations (both centers must come set on whistle; all faceoffs in circles; same linesman drops puck for all face-offs)
• Delayed penalty variation (offending team must exit zone in possession of puck to stop play)
• Changes only permitted on-the-fly (except after goals and upon manpower changes)
• Remove trapezoid
• Allow hand passes in all zones
• Overtime variation (switch ends)
• Shootout variation (5-man shootout with repeat players if tied after 5 shooters)
• Thin-netting nets
• 'Hybrid' icing
• Offside variation (offending team can't change and faceoff in its end zone)
• Faceoff variations (player encroaching can't replace thrown-out center, all faceoffs in circles; same linesman drops puck for all faceoffs)
• All penalties to be served in their entirety
• Strict enforcement of goaltenders covering puck outside crease (rule 63.2)
• Bear-hug rule
• Overtime variation (switch ends for four minutes of 4-on-4, followed by three minutes of 3-on-3)
• Shootout variation (3-man shoot out with repeat shooters if tied after 3 shooters)
