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Crash The Net: Yes or No?

ladybyng — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 11:08:12 +0000

In ice hockey there is a wonderful play which is “crashing the net”. For those who don’t know what crashing the net is, its when 3-4 of the skaters rush towards the offensive goal in the hope that if the shot on goal misses, one of the others can get the rebound. It can also be known as “picking up the trash”.

Now while this may sound like an awesome play to make, like any set play it has its risks. If the skaters don’t get the rebound, more than likely those 3-4 skaters will be trapped behind the net and the opposition will have the advantage with only one defenseman left to defend the neutral and defensive zone.

So, the question is, to crash the net or not to crash the net? Does the possible outcome outweigh the risk? This depends on which lines of the team do this and how much faith you have in your D core and, of course, your goaltender.

Perhaps it would be easier to send in one player to crash the net than the whole team. While in the offensive zone and passing the puck between the players, having 3 players on the blue line makes no sense at all, especially when the team on the offense is on the powerplay. It makes more sense to have a trashman (a power forward) set up in front of the goaltender and guarding the crease in this situation, not only to hopefully get a juicy rebound (“pick up the trash”), but also in the hopes of redirecting a shot on goal from the point.

Can a team crash the net in a 5 on 5 situation? Yes. Is it a wise move? That would certainly depend on the skaters. Ideally, the crashing players would need to be bigger than the opposition but also fast skaters to get back into position in the event of a turnover. The risk level is high, especially if there is a question mark over the stay at home player or the goaltender.

Can a team crash the net on a powerplay? Yes. Of course this would make much more sense as there is less risk and the offensive team can crash with 3 or 4 players with an advantage, giving more flexibility. If they crash with 3, then 2 defensemen would stay back, however this is probably more likely in a 5-on-3 powerplay rather than a 5-on-4 situation.

Should a team crash the net? Well, this is obviously not a question that can be answered with a blanket yes or no. Every situation is different in the game but one thing is for sure, crashing the net should always be an option.

Live the games of your own hockey team

Recent Improvements At PowerPlay Manager

Sam — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 06:00:03 +0000

Over the last month there have been in incredibly exciting improvements to the Powerplay Manager online game.

October 2, 2009: The improvements began with the introduction of trophies for all tournament, league and competition winners, so you can now not only brag about your win, but show it off with a shiney new trophy! Also implemented during this update was the “online users” page, which is a great way to track down who’s online, see who has pro-pack and much more. The PPM team also introduced the PPM Facebook Page and Group.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2345238254
http://www.facebook.com/pages/PowerPlay-Manager/40840299922

October 12, 2009: Press Releases have been incredibly popular features of other manager games, and PPM has now implemented their own. You can now post press releases about your team, players, etc to share with the wider community. These are a spectacular way to help spread the word, brag about wins, inform about changes or simply act like a real hockey team and post regular updates. This update also introduced the PPM Twitter page. If you are a twitter user, be sure to follow PPM!

http://twitter.com/hockeymanager

October 15, 2009: This was a major update for fans of the propogation of the game, as PPM how reward those who help spread the word with a fantastic credit referral system. This is also a fantastic way for Support Team Captains to measure their marketing efforts and track new members.

Check out PowerPlay Manager today

Live the games of your own hockey team

Ice Cold: Fan Etiquette On The Road

Sam — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 09:47:37 +0000

As hockey fans we’ve all experienced, or been at the delivery end of less than appropriate behaviour. A major part of being a fan is the passion we have for our teams, and be damned anybody who challenge our team.

But when do we draw the line and say enough-is-enough, let’s be the bigger people. Or, to put it more bluntly, when do we grow a pair and be adults.

Those who frequent the Gold Coast Blue Tongues games know and understand that there is a highly passionate group of fans who sit directly behind the opposition bench, an area that is often considered by travelling fans to be where opposition fans should sit. What people need to understand is that the LizardPit, which we refer to that section behind the opposition bench has always been used by this group of fans, and at no point in time at our rink, has that area ever been an area for opposition fans. In fact, those who sit there, do so for a reason. The Blue Tongues journalist sits there and need to be able to hear the referees and/or the people running the penalty box and we often have a photographer / web updater there who use the gap to get photos.

That said, I want to talk about fan etiquette.

We had a large contingency of fans for an opposition team at a Tongues game recently who took exception of these Blue Tongues fans. I’m not going to mention the team name on purpose, please accept that. On Sunday, instead of approaching the rink or these people and asking them, as adults if they could give up their spot so the opposition fans could all sit together, they went the manipulative route, and deceptively bypassed the rules of our home rink by going in before the general public. How they got in is irrelavent, although it is known.

Here’s the thing… this is an organisation that claims to be high-class and professional, yet in a situation that would have been resolved simply by asking the fans if they could move for one game, they acted unprofessionally, and in the most classless manner imaginable. For future reference, any act of professionalism is going to be marred by the fact that certain people are all talk and no show, which is a pitty.

I can’t help but wonder, what would happen if another team traveled to their rink and did this?

I wish to point out, that the Blue Tongues fans in question did choose to move and be the better people.

In the future, to all involved, please be as professional and classy as you claim and ask, you’d be surprised at how accomodating we can be.

Live the games of your own hockey team

Sam — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 07:08:58 +0000

Do you know that feeling of anxiety before a game of your favorite team on TV? When the thought of what might happen if your team beats the overwhelming favorite or if they advance to the next round of the playoffs sends shivers down your spine? And what if that team is managed by you yourself? When you know that any victory, any sort of success is the direct result of your management decisions.

The phenomenon of online manager sport games is currently spreading in the virtual world of internet. These manager games bring together sports fans from all over the world to compete for the unofficial crown of the best virtual manager. One of these games is also the hockey manager called PowerPlay Manager where we had the opportunity to feel the anxiety for the results of our team

PowerPlay Manager is a game which puts you into the chair of a manager of a hockey team which you yourself create. What is addictive about this game is the chance to follow the games of your team live, with commentary in the language of your choice and with graphic elements. The game will probably also be watched by your opponent. Every time you celebrate a goal could mean disappointment somewhere on the other hemisphere because this game is played in countries where you would think they never heard of hockey.

We were tensely watching every offensive play of the opponent hoping that the goalie will make the save, while on the other hand, every time we had a chance we were hoping that this would be the one that would end up in the net and swing the momentum our way. But the most anxious moments were, when we led by a goal and the opponent pulled the goalie with two minutes left to try and even the score. Fortunately, similar as in reality, this sort of a risk rarely pays off.

To see an example of this sort of a live broadcast, see the URL below:

http://pptv.powerplaymanager.com/en/hockey-broadcast.html?data=101004

This is a recording of a similar game with drama all the way to the end. If you have not managed to see the live game of your team, you can still see the recording and you can also simultaneously watch games of other teams who you are interested in, or who can influence your position in the standings.

Not everybody has the opportunity to become a hockey professional or a hockey manager in the real world. But you can experience similar emotions as they do. All you have to do is to create your own team at http://www.powerplaymanager.com/.

Recent Improvements At PowerPlay Manager

Tongues Struggle Without Local Depth

Sam — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 07:21:57 +0000

The Blue Tongues are on the road this weekend facing off against the Ice Dogs and Bears with a depleted team due to injuries and personal committments. The Tongues solid regular 2nd line made up of Trevor Walsh, Dave Upton and Matt Stubbert are all out this weekend, as is forward Jack Conner and key stay at home defenseman Don Burke.

The lack of depth was prominant in Saturdays 4-1 loss to the Sydney Ice Dogs. The scoreline does not truly reflect the game or how even the teams were, but the loss does show that depth players are essential to a strong team.

Sunday saw a similar situation occur with the Blue Tongues going down 3-2 to the Bears in a shootout. While not a regulation loss, a loss to the Bears is still very much a shock considering they’ve only 4 points this season, including the 2pts they picked up tonight. Andre Selander picked up the only 2 regulation goals.

The Tongues second line has been vital in the recent string of home wins putting up goals and setting up plays. They’re also a solid 2-way line who shut down the opponents while giving the imports a chance to have a rest. Jack Conner, who has been out a few weeks already brings speed and secondary scoring and can play from the top line down, so is very flexible.

One of the biggest losses this weekend however has been Don Burke, who has been absolutely solid on the blueline this season.

According to sources, the Blue Tongues will go into next weekends road games Vs the Melbourne Ice without Walsh, Burke, Upton or Conner.

Bears Win Calder, Set AHL Record

Sam — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 16:00:41 +0000

A solid 3 goal first period by Hershey took the wind out of the Manitoba Moose, and set up was to become the Calder Cup winning game, the 10th in Hersey Bears history, and a new AHL record. Goals by Andrew Gordon, Alexandre Giroux, Chris Bourque and Keith Aucoin helped the Bears secure the victory, with the Moose only scoring once in the game by Mario Bliznack.

The win came the same day Dan Bylsma’s Pittsburgh Penguins won the NHL’s Stanley Cup. Bylsma started the 2008/2009 season in the AHL.

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Photo Galleries

Sam — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 12:23:42 +0000

We have the following Blue Tongues photo galleries. We will be adding more in time.

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The 2 Main Rules

Sam — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:28:54 +0000

During a game of hockey there are 2 main rules that affect gameplay. They are the Offside rule and the Icing rule.

Offside:

When any member of the attacking team precedes the puck carrier over the defending team’s blue line.

Icing:

When a player shoots the puck across the red center line and past the opposing red goal line. Icing is not called if the player’s team is killing a penalty or an onsides attacker or defending goaltender touches the puck first.

Common Terms