At the NHL general managers meeting, the big talk was the EBUG: The Emergency Backup Goaltender.
But there was a more important rule change that may actually take place that is long overdue.
General managers looked at the offside rule. Too often we’ve seen goals taken away because a player’s skate blade has come off the ice over the blue line as a teammate enters the zone.
The rule change will be similar to a ball crossing the goal line in football. As long as the skate breaks the plane or is above the line, it’ll still be onside.
The change will cut down on the number of offside calls, it’ll cut down on the number of challenges and it’ll allow more goals in a league that is trying to increase scoring.
A win-win-win for the NHL.
Sadly, this was an easy fix for the NHL, only about three years late since these offside reviews became a thing.
But let’s not get too distracted with the time. At least the change is coming because sports fans all want one thing — less video review.