Improving the Game...

As a hockey fan I have provided ideas to teams that need improvement. I WANT TO MAKE THE GAME BETTER.

Gretzky is wrong to think that 4-on-4 hockey will go against tradition. The fact is if the NHL hadn't went from 9-on-9, prior to the turn of the century, then to 7-on-7 (remember Ottawa's silver 7), and as it stands now 6-on-6 (when you consider the goalie) the game would never have sold the way it did. Now it is time to do away with one skater. The game has become faster, so you need to make it a safer place to play. It is cost efficient to do so. The stars need the opportunity to become superstars and the superstars need the extra ice to shine. The fans need to be entertained. The fans want to see more of the skilled players. Wayne Gretzky carries a lot of weight in any decision making by the league. Well he should, he is a great representative for the league. This doesn't mean he's right all the time. He claims to be a traditionalist. Yet he wants to improve the game. That's exactly what I am suggesting. My suggestion of 4-on-4 hockey will maintain tradition AND improve the game. Call it progress. With 4-on-4 hockey for the entire game; EVERYONE is a winner!

During the play-offs in particular it was interesting to note that the teams like to shorten their bench to put on their best players late in the game to either preserve a victory or to get one. WHY SHOULD FANS HAVE TO WAIT FOR THIS TO HAPPEN? 4-on-4 hockey does this for the entire game...so why not implement it?
One league executive went into my site and e-mailed me back poking fun by saying perhaps 3-on-3, or better still 2-on-2 would be better. My answer to that is....the time is now for 4-on-4 hockey.......nothing less....after almost 100 years of 5-on-5 hockey it's time the league upgraded the entertainment package to go with the changing times and address their corporate changes caused by expansion.....and yes if in another 100 years the fans want 3-on-3 hockey......maybe they should get it.....afterall the fans are important and what makes the league........however.....if the league does it right there probably will be no need for a change........"IN MY OPINION"....this league executive has "TUNNEL VISION" and is possibly the reason this franchise is having financial problems......besides in a 100 years from now.......who knows the way hockey will be played........all I know is the time is now for 4-on-4 hockey as it has much more to offer than 5-on-5 hockey......which has outdated itself.

Always remember when the league went from 6-on-6 to 5-on-5 hockey it became bigger than ever......the fan base grew.....it created a better entertainment package...it was "PROGRESS".
After the worlds I found it interesting to here Chris Draper in an interview go on about how exciting, safe, wide open and entertaining it was to play 20 minute 4-on-4 overtime periods....said you really don't get to appreciate the fun it was to play the game in the NHL 5 minute overtime format.....wasn't committed to promoting it for the entire game......but did say he would like to see it happen......not to mention the cost efficiency of the format....not to mention the answer to boring "Trap" hockey......So why not???....eh!

4-on-4 hockey for the entire game will save the league millions of dollars and be a big boost for fan interest