2 Over the Glass

Is it time to finally change this rule?

Written by Hosea C
Canucks Access

According to section 63.2 of the NHL rulebook, ‘When any player or goalkeeper, while in his defending zone, shoots the puck directly (non-deflected) out of play, except where there is no glass, a penalty should be assessed for delaying the game. After hearing Greg Millen explain it practically every week on CBC Hockey Night in Canada, everyone should be familiar with this rule.

This issue has been talked about over and over again, but I’m going to throw in my two cents anyways. What really bugs me, and probably many others as well, is the question as to why shooting the puck over the glass is considered a penalty?

I understand that some players do it intentionally to delay the game, but honestly, how often does that happen? When it does occur, it’s mostly accidental. If that is considered ‘delay of game’, what about icing? It’s probably safe to say that players intentionally ice the puck more then they intentionally shoot it over the glass; and that’s before this rule was implemented.

One of the best solutions, which I’ve heard, is to punish the team shooting the puck over the glass exactly like how they would for icing: don’t let the defending team change their lines. The only exception would be if it were blatantly obvious that the player shooting the puck over the glass did it deliberately. This change in the rules would be a simple, yet justifiable, punishment and it won’t force referees to call a penalty, which could potentially change the outcome of the game. Wouldn’t it be dandy to lose a playoff series after the other team scores on a powerplay because someone from your own team shot the puck over the glass accidentally?

Well, at least some lucky fan gets a free puck.

We’re still waiting, Gary Bettman, we’re still waiting.