Friday, February 22, 2002
Penalty-killing easier on big ice, Hitchcock says
By AL STRACHAN -- Toronto Sun
SALT LAKE CITY -- It would be reasonable to assume that with a large ice surface, a power play should be more dangerous that usual.
Team Canada assistant coach Ken Hitchcock, the architect of much of the team's strategy, says not.
"I think it's far easier to kill a penalty here," he said.
The reason is that the defencemen must guard the boards and with the wide ice, that increases the distance their shots must travel to get to the net.
"There are no threats here," Hitchcock said. "You can eliminate threats. You can just collapse the box and give up the outside all the time.
STAY PASSIVE
"It's another 10 to 15 feet, so it's easier for the goaltender to play that. Once there's clear possession, they just stand there and stay passive."
If a defenceman can't score, Hitchcock said, "the only goals that get scored on the power play are tips, screens and little bang-bang plays down low.
"When you play a passive box, all those bang-bang plays that work in our league when teams are chasing the puck, they're not here. They don't chase, all of that is eliminated."
On international ice, Hitchcock said, the most dangerous opponent is the off-side defencemen.
The reason, Hitchcock said, "is that you've got to bring another guy down because the box is so passive."
But when that defenceman joins the attack, there is a danger of an odd-man rush by the short-handed team. That seems to happen often.
"I bet you've see as many of those in this tournament as you would in two months in the NHL," said Hitchcock.
So power plays can wind up doing more harm than good.
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2002 Games Men's Hockey Coverage
