from Pierre LeBrun of ESPN,

During this Christmas break, as we pause and reflect, I am going to take a few minutes to bring you my vision for the NHL. There are things I would like to change on and off the ice. So if I could convince the NHL, its owners and the NHLPA, here's what I envision:

1. Limit the outdoor game to the Winter Classic on Jan. 1 and no others. The event is being watered down by having a number of outdoor games every season. The New Year's Day game is a perfect date, it's a special game. But to preserve its value and quality long-term, the NHL and NHLPA must set aside their appetite for revenue and limit it to just one game. That would give the Winter Classic a longer shelf life. Less is more, as they say.

2. Shrink the end zones to where they were before the blue line was pushed out in 2005-06. This one comes courtesy of the great Scotty Bowman. The neutral zone was shrunk from 54 feet to 50 feet in 2005, the idea being that the bigger zones from the blue line in would allow for more offense. But now all you get is five players collapsing down low to block shots. Bowman's idea is that if we go back to old dimensions, maybe the wingers would have to cover defensemen like they used to and open up more ice underneath. Not to mention point men would be closer to the net when taking their shots. When in doubt, trust the NHL's all-time winningest coach.

continue for eight more suggestions...