from Darren Dreger of TSN,

Is it merely a matter of time before the National Hockey League moves to 3-on-3 overtime, or is jeopardizing the future of the shootout too risky?

The American Hockey League is currently testing an overtime formula that begins with the dreaded dry scrape before three minutes of 4-on-4, followed by four minutes of 3-on-3.

Through Friday, the AHL has had six overtime games - with three decided in the first three minutes and three decided in the new 3-on-3 window.

Yes, it's a small sample size, but not one AHL game this season has required a shootout to decide a winner.

The NHL, unwilling to embrace 3-on-3, is watching the AHL experiment closely.

continued plus a few more hockey topics...