1-3-1 system to be discussed at GM meeting

[germany00]

The general managers will hold their first meeting of the 2011-12 season Tuesday in Toronto, and it is likely that the 1-3-1 forecheck utilized by the Tampa Bay Lightning will be a hot button topic for discussion.

The Lightning's version of the patient forecheck became a League-wide conversation piece last week when the Philadelphia Flyers opted not to attack it but instead sit back and wait. Tampa Bay chose not to attack either, but instead wait for the Flyers to attempt to move the puck up the ice.

The officials had to blow the whistle to stop the play because nothing was happening; the puck had stopped moving.

"There has certainly been a lot of debate over the last few days about what happened in the game," Flyers GM Paul Holmgren told NHL.com Monday night from the Hockey Hall of Fame inductions. "Coaches do different things and their ultimate job and task is to win the game. Personally, I didn't have a problem with what Tampa did. They sit back and wait and they have great offensive players so if you turn the puck over they can hurt you. There was a period of time in the first period where we didn't bite into it and were doing our own thing, but to me it just didn't sit right."

Holmgren is ready for the discussion, but he isn't sure if anything can come of it at the general managers' level because, as he said, "How are you going to mandate how teams forecheck and how teams attack? How are you going to do that?"

Lightning GM Steve Yzerman told ESPN.com that he thinks it is worthy of a discussion and that he's looking forward to having one. Dallas' Joe Nieuwendyk, who was inducted into the Hall of Fame on Monday, joked with NHL.com that he anticipates it becoming the Yzerman and Holmgren show at the meeting Tuesday.

"It'll be interesting," Penguins GM Ray Shero told NHL.com. "We played against Tampa in the playoffs last year and lost in seven games, and they played the same system. I have some thoughts, but that's the great thing about having these meetings -- you hear ideas from other general managers in the League and you kick things around.

"I talked to our coaching staff and some of our players about it, what they thought, and really I'm not exactly what can be done about any defensive or forechecking system. The game is the game. If there are some great ideas I'm all ears. We'll see what comes out of it."

 

[Sports Hour]

For anyone who doesn't understand the 1-3-1 forecheck, this is the cause for concern:

I have mixed views on this system. Tampa uses it because their forwards are so strong, so if they force a turnover they already come back into the offensive zone 3 on 2 or at least over-matching the opponent's defense.

But it does tend to lead to some boring hockey like in the Philly game, if the offense doesn't want to push the puck through Tampa's forecheck. It will just lead to a stand still like in the video.

Yet, I don't think that the GM's meeting can change anything - because they can't really tell a coaching staff how to coach, and can't tell them to throw out their style of a forecheck.

 

[playmaker7]

Yeah you really can't tell them you can't use that method of forechecking...i think they won't do anything to it honestly.

 

[germany00]

Yea, they only way they could stop it is with penalties, but thats just fucking ridiculous yo put someone in the box for forechecking lol