Dein erstes Forum » with three decided in the first three minutes

Another hockey season is well under way and with it, The Dreger Report makes its season debut today and will be posted post every Friday on TSN.ca. Extra Time Issues Is it merely a matter of time before the National Hockey League moves to 3-on-3 overtime, or is jeopardizing the future of the shootout too risky? The American Hockey League is currently testing an overtime formula that begins with the dreaded dry scrape before three minutes of 4-on-4, followed by four minutes of 3-on-3. Through Friday, the AHL has had six overtime games - with three decided in the first three minutes and three decided in the new 3-on-3 window. Yes, its a small sample size, but not one AHL game this season has required a shootout to decide a winner. The NHL, unwilling to embrace 3-on-3, is watching the AHL experiment closely. And while its interested in the early returns, the league understandably needs to see more games and more data before making (another) overtime change the top agenda when NHL general managers meet in March. NHL sources suggest the 3-on-3 success in the American Hockey League will generate a larger debate. If games are overwhelmingly decided in overtime, it will naturally minimize the shootout. And many believe that league brass doesnt want to see that happen. For that matter, a good percentage of NHL fans may not want to see that happen, either. Now both the NHL and AHL are both using the dry scrape and long change. The dry scrape, a.k.a. The Buzz Kill, was introduced to provide a better playing surface in hopes of generating goals and curbing shootouts. While arena crews manning two Zamboni machines have cut their time to a reasonable four-and-a-half to five minutes, there are some in both leagues who are still irked by the halt in momentum. The long change strategy - where teams switch sides in overtime to encourage defensive mistakes - is generating positive reviews, but the changes at the NHL level arent collectively having any impact. So far this season, the NHL has produced 17 games going beyond regulation with four of those games decided in overtime. Last season, there were 17 games beyond regulation played over the same stretch, with seven decided in overtime. So as the season rolls on, NHL decision makers (as will we) will continue to monitor the AHLs testing with the dry scrape, long change and 3-on-3 overtime - as heavily scrutinized as its been along the way. World Cup Update The NHL, NHL Players Association and International Ice Hockey Federation met on Wednesday in New York regarding the 2016 World Cup of Hockey. While the meeting was described as productive, its still believed an announcement is at least a month away. Toronto will host the event in September of 2016, but its still unknown as to which countries - or how many - will participate. For now, the World Cup of Hockey will remain in North America and is expected to generate a bidding war between potential future host cities, including those in Europe. On The Marc With The Senators And our daily Marc Methot watch continues in Ottawa. The Senators defenceman remains on the sidelines and hasnt been able to resume skating. His prognosis is expected to be updated early next week. Based on the play of young forward Curtis Lazar, the Senators will have a tough decision to make when Methot is lifted off Injured Reserve. The Senators have 23 players on their active roster, so based on a stalled contract negotiation, trade possibilities involving Methot could kick into high gear when he returns to good health. Until next week...look forward to our next edition of Insider Trading on TSN and TSN.ca on Tuesday. 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Up 1-0 in the first half after Xabi Alonso had converted a dubious penalty kick, Spain had a glorious chance to double their lead in the 43rd minute. An exquisite reverse pass from Andres Iniesta (pictured below) sent David Silva in alone on the Dutch goal. Unfortunately, Silvas finish wasnt up to the same standard as Iniestas pass. (CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE) Just one minute later, the Netherlands equalized through a spectacular Robin van Persie diving header. With no apparent danger coming from the Netherlands, Spain set up in a very narrow defensive shape. (Spains opponents will do well to take note – exploiting this is a key to success against the reigning World Cup champs.) Yet just two passes later, the ball was in the back of the Spanish goal. The first pass came from Bruno Martins Indi to Daley Blind, who took up a wide position on the left flank. It was a free pass, with no Spanish player in a position to put pressure on Blinds first touch. (CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE) Once Blind received the ball, Spains back four was vulnerable to the diagonal ball over the top to van Persie – because Sergio Ramos, the left central defender, fell asleep and got caught ball-watching. (CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE) With no pressure on the ball, Blind was able to spot that van Persie managed to get a step in front of his marker, Ramos. (CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE) The ball from Blind was exquisite, and it was matched only by the finish from van Persie - a diving, looping header over Iker Casillas in Spains goal. (CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE) So what could Spain have done differently? In this situation, when the ball went wide to Blind, Gerard Pique was tight with Arjen Robben, the first striker – as he should be.dddddddddddd His defensive partner, Ramos, needed to be in a deeper covering position, so that he could support Pique while also nullifying the threat of the ball in behind to van Persie. (CLICK FOR LARGER IMAGE) It is only a matter of Ramos being 3-4 yards deeper, but at the World Cup, that is sometimes all that is needed to create scoring opportunities. Had Spains back-four been properly aligned (highlighted in yellow, above), Blind would never had played the ball forward for van Persie to run onto because Ramos would have been in a position to head the pass away. This goal, scored right before the half-time break, was a real blow to Spains confidence. From nearly doubling their lead a minute earlier, to conceding a wonder goal to the Dutch, the momentum turned in favour of the Netherlands going into the second half. The Spanish collapse after the break – where they conceded four unanswered goals – should have been prevented, though. The second goal was down to a combination of wonderful skill from Robben and slack marking from Pique and Ramos; the third and fourth goals down to mistakes from Casillas, with the fifth goal a classic counter-attacking move from the Dutch. It would be naïve to presume that this result – as shocking as it was – is an indication that Spains style of play is now ineffective. La Roja still possess a squad full of some of the worlds most talented players, and they will continue to employ their tiki-taka possession game to great effect. Players like Alonso, Xavi, Iniesta and Silva are still a joy to watch, and they will go into their next game with Chile knowing they must win, as a loss will effectively end their tournament. What it does prove, though, is that even the best are fallible on an off day. ' ' '