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NHL Ice guru looking at building a better puck

Darren Dreger
4/26/2008 5:27:18 PM
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Bad ice.  Every time hockey operations or NHL ice crews hear that term they snarl.

Dan Craig, the league's ice aficionado says there is no such thing as bad ice, below average, sure, but never bad.

But, Craig isn't blind to the fact goaltenders are fooled by crazy bounces from afar like Nashville's Dan Ellis was in the opening round, or  scoring chances are missed like the one john Michael Liles had to tie the game with eight seconds left in Detroit in Game one.

He reads the reports afterwards that blame the ice for blown chances, but Craig would like hockey traditionalists to consider something else....the pucks.

The focal point of the sport.

How many times have you heard a coach or player follow a loss with, "we just didn't get the bounces."

Equipment in hockey has changed over the years, sticks have evolved from wood to composite, so the NHL's ice guru wants a full investigation into how to make a better puck.

Maybe a puck that bounces less.

Craig also wonders if the existing puck has been altered over time, the chemistry somehow changed.

Inglasco, the NHL's manufacturer didn't immediately return calls.

As for interest in investing both time and money into the research and development supporting Craig's contention, deputy commissioner Bill Daly says, "no, I don't think its on the top of our list of priorities."

Hmmm.

Great care is taken in making certain pucks are frozen and kept at a certain temperature and new pucks are introduced as many as ten times per game, but the issue of how and why the puck bounces has never been addressed.

Dan craig wants to find out.

For TSN.ca, I'm Darren Dreger.

 

Darren Dreger

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