Dan Hinote had bitten his lip long enough that it was nearly black and blue. But Hinote says in the new NHL that’s about the only body part black and blue anymore.
“There’s no testosterone in the game right now,” the Avalanche’s veteran right wing said, breaking a taboo on league criticism since the game returned from the labor dispute canceled the 2004-05 season. “They’ve taken a lot of the physical aspects out of the game. It’s predominantly special teams now. It’s unfortunate, because there’s no more battling in the corners. I won’t say there’s none, but there’s a lot less. There’s no scrums in front of the net.”
Hinote says a league that wanted to increase scoring, and has become successful doing so, went too far. Now, he says, it’s similar to the NBA, with too many whistles on ticky-tack violations.
Through Tuesday night’s games, there were 12.4 power- play advantages per game, up from 8.8 at the same point (495 games) in 2003-04. There were 1,081 power-play goals, compared with 691 in 2003-04. Overall goal-scoring remains up significantly, from 5.0 goals to 6.3.
“There’s far less hitting. You play a more tentative style because you don’t want to put your team down,” Hinote said. “On the other side, I think it is more entertaining for people to watch. From my point of view, the type of game I have to play, they’ve taken a lot of that part away.
“Now, is the league better because of these new rules? Perhaps. Maybe the fans like it more. And if that’s what we’re geared toward, then they’re doing their job right. But there’s a lot of hockey fans, fans who have been watching a long time, that are going to miss that part of the game.”
Devil’s advocates might say Hinote is whining because physical players like him can’t get away with blatant clutching and grabbing.
“I’m not whining,” Hinote said. “I agree, when (hooking and holding) is just hindering players like (Peter) Forsberg and (Joe) Sakic, when it’s hindering the game to that point, then yeah, there had to be changes. But I think it went a little too far the other way.”
Hinote isn’t the only Avalanche player with this opinion.
“I think they’ve taken away a little bit of the battles,” forward Andrew Brunette said. “It’s part of hockey. If not, it’s kind of roller hockey. Roller hockey, that’s not good.”
Detroit Red Wings veteran Brendan Shanahan, one of nine people on the NHL’s competition committee that devised new rules and mandates before play resumed this season, acknowledged in a recent conference call that goals might be coming too easily – particularly in close to the net.
“We have to preserve the battles down low,” Shanahan said. “And I think that it’s been definitely something that (NHL director of officiating) Stephen Walkom addresses with the referees. We like the physical play down low. That’s not an invitation for holding and hooking, because that’s not physical play.
“I found in the first week of the season, defensemen really didn’t know what they could do or what they couldn’t do, so they just didn’t touch you. And now, I’m finding more are actually being very physical within the parameters of the new rules. Players will get better with it and referees will get better with it.”
Sakic does not want to see the NHL turn into the NBA, but he said he believes the game is more fun for players and fans.
“It’s still a physical game, I think, but there’s just more speed than before,” he said. “I think the game is better overall.”
Avs coach Joel Quenneville said some players are having a hard time breaking old habits.
“Sometimes you still want to reach back and grab the guy who took the puck away. It shouldn’t be a habit anymore, but it’s still a guy’s natural instinct,” Quenneville said. “Overall, I like the way the game is being played and officiated.”
Scoring comparison
Season *2005-06 2003-04
Goals/game avg. 5.0 || 6.3
Total goals 3,096 || 2,473
Total PPG 1,081 || 694
PP adv. per game 12.4 || 8.8
PP adv. total 6,152 || 4,352
* Through Tuesday
(SOURCE: NHL)
Adrian Dater can be reached at 303-820-5454 or adater@denverpost.com.
