nhl game committee meets

[roots]

7:11 PM EDT, 07/22/2004
NHL Game Committee meets for first time

NEW YORK - The National Hockey League Game Committee, a panel of players, coaches, executives, officials and media charged to examine all aspects of the game, met for the first time today in New York.

The committee, co-chaired by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman and Executive Vice President and Director of Hockey Operations Colin Campbell, in alphabetical order:

American Hockey League president and CEO Dave Andrews; Hockey Hall of Fame member and all-time NHL head coaching victories leader Scotty Bowman; Ontario Hockey League commissioner Dave Branch; New Jersey Devils goaltender Martin Brodeur; MSG Network/Hockey Night in Canada analyst John Davidson; Hockey Hall of Fame left wing and Montreal Canadiens executive vice president and general manager Bob Gainey; Hockey Hall of Fame right wing and NHLPA business relations director Mike Gartner; NHLPA executive director Bob Goodenow; NHLPA player relations manager Steve Larmer; Hockey Hall of Fame center and Pittsburgh Penguins owner Mario Lemieux; Dallas Stars president Jim Lites; Edmonton Oilers executive vice president and general manager Kevin Lowe; Florida Panthers head coach Jacques Martin; Minnesota Wild chairman Bob Naegele, Jr.; Buffalo Sabres general manager Darcy Regier; Toronto Maple Leafs left wing Gary Roberts; Carolina Hurricanes president and general manager Jim Rutherford; St. Louis Blues president and CEO Mark Sauer; Hockey Hall of Fame member and Boston Bruins president Harry Sinden; Hockey Hall of Fame member and Philadelphia Flyers chairman Ed Snider; Atlanta Thrashers vice president and general manager Don Waddell; Nashville Predators right wing Scott Walker; NHL referee Stephen Walkom; New York Islanders owner Charles Wang and San Jose Sharks executive vice president and general manager Doug Wilson.

The committee discussed a variety of subjects during the meeting, which ran six hours with a working lunch break. Among the topics: the position of goaltending, defensive systems, physical play and officiating.

"This was a good, in-depth discussion. We conducted a thorough examination of all aspects of the game," Commissioner Bettman said. "We want to see if we can improve the end-to-end flow of the game and we want to see if we can create more scoring chances.

"There was a great exchange of ideas," he added. "We'll take a little time to process the information, then we'll get back to the committee and regroup -- either in-person or on a conference call."

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above article swiped from NHL.com..
Brodeur wants goalies to be able to play the puck..i want to watch Brodeur play the puck ..does anyone do it better??

[Jazz]

Star-studded panel discusses rules changes to increase offence in NHL[/u][/color]

IRA PODELL
Thursday, July 22, 2004

NEW YORK - Whenever the NHL resumes play, plenty of hockey experts have plenty of suggestions on how to increase offence in the game.

A blue-ribbon panel comprised of hockey royalty - from Mario Lemieux to Scotty Bowman - convened Thursday to discuss how the on-ice product can be better once a new labor agreement is reached. The spirited talks were praised by current and former players, NHL officials, coaches, general managers and executives, who made up the all-star group.

"Everybody on the panel really cares about the game of hockey and is trying to make it more exciting and have more scoring," said Lemieux, the player-owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Hall of Famer Wayne Gretzky was expected, but he didn't attend because of a scheduling conflict. New Jersey goalie Martin Brodeur, Toronto forward Gary Roberts, and Nashville forward Scott Walker were there.

They were joined by referee Stephen Walkom, several team presidents, Islanders owner Charles Wang, six general managers, and Bowman - the winningest coach in league history.

"I've been involved in a lot of meetings in my life, but I've never been in a meeting that had the composition this meeting did," NHL hockey operations director Colin Campbell said.

The atmosphere was positive, something that couldn't be said about labor negotiations held in New York on Wednesday. Without a new collective bargaining agreement by Sept. 15, the NHL will endure a lockout that threatens to wipe out the entire season.

The league presented six concepts to the players' association on Wednesday, but the NHLPA said each contains a salary cap it refuses to accept. That philosophical difference between the sides is what makes the NHL's second lockout in 11 seasons more likely.

"A couple of players came in and we were like, 'It's kind of hard to get ready for this because there's so much uncertainty for the season,"' Brodeur said.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman made it clear Thursday's discussions, which lasted about 6 hours, were strictly to address on-ice issues and not the problems off it - despite the presence of union head Bob Goodenow.

Following up on recommended rules changes proposed by general managers at a February meeting near Las Vegas, this panel of 25 discussed the state of the game.

"It's another opportunity to talk more at length about some of the changes," new Florida coach Jacques Martin said. "We got different opinions from the players, so it gives you a different perspective."

After three days in the desert, the league's GMs suggested some radical ideas that were met with varying levels of resistance.

Most of that came from goaltenders, who didn't like hearing that the width of their pads could shrink 2 inches down to 10, and that they would not be allowed to go behind the net to play the puck - a skill Brodeur has used to basically become a third defenceman.

"My view will never change on that. I should be able to do whatever I want," he said. "I think most of the people in there want people to express their talent as much as they can. So, goalies being able to handle the puck is a talent that they don't want to take away."

Bettman developed this panel as part of a process to create more flow up and down the ice and create more scoring chances.

"It was very productive," said Lemieux, one of hockey's greatest scorers. "We talked a lot about the game, different issues. It was a great discussion."

Bettman went to Las Vegas with a mandate to GMs to produce a better product after scoring dropped by 2½ goals per game in the last 15 years to an average of five per game.

This meeting was another step before further talks will be held that he hopes will produce several changes.

"The framework of the meeting was what about the game fundamentally is good and what are the things that we think we should focus on," Bettman said.

The reduction of goalie pads hit a snag last month when the NHLPA filed a grievance to prevent the NHL from "unilaterally attempting to implement changes" and trying to circumvent the CBA and labor laws.

Bettman said at the time that he was not looking to pick fights with the union, and added Thursday that most of the discussions regarding goaltenders centred on their play and not equipment.

Other ideas suggested by GMs were moving the nets back 3 feet toward the end boards to 10 feet. They also supported bringing back the tag-up offsides rule, which will lead to fewer whistles.

Some concepts, such as wider blue lines and giving three points for a regulation victory will be tested in the AHL before they are considered for the NHL.

link: www.canada.com/sports/hockey/story.html?id=0E9FCE68-39F0-499D-80F3-5541ABD202D9