from Ken Campbell of The Hockey News,

Many argue the evolution of the player has narrowed the gap so much between the best players and lesser ones that it’s more difficult to create offense. Now, instead of having a fourth-line of enforcers and role players, teams have bottom-six forwards who can skate almost as well as the top-six forwards. And according to St. Louis Blues coach Ken Hitchcock, teams are actually playing far more reckless defensively than they ever have, challenging the puck carrier at every opportunity.

“If you’re a winger, there’s a defenseman in your face every shift,” Hitchcock said. “He’s either in your face as you exit (your zone) or he’s in your face in the neutral zone. So there’s no space, no time.”

Teams play a swarm defense in their own zone. They collapse in front of their net and block shots like never before.

“It used to be that a shot blocker was a specialist,” said Anaheim Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau. “Now, everybody blocks shots.”

So is the New NHL still working? Or does the league need another round of sweeping changes? Let’s look at the major changes and see where we stand 10 years later:...

Removal of the red line
In an effort to speed up the game and stretch out the ice, the NHL removed the red line, creating the stretch pass. But there are those who think it has sped the game up too much, especially in the neutral zone.

There were a lot of old-school coaches who were not in favor of the move, but many have changed their minds.

“You can catch a team on transition and that’s great,” said Capitals coach Barry Trotz. “You see teams throw it into a space and the guy is just flying. The Rangers do that a lot.”

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