Anaheim Ducks’ Size, Ruggedness Too Much for Blackhawks’ Skill in Game 1

May 17th, 2015 by Adrian Dater Leave a reply »

Size still matters in the NHL. The Anaheim Ducks proved that, for one day at least, in their 4-1 victory over the Chicago Blackhawks in Game 1 of the Western Conference Final on Sunday at the Honda Center.

When the NHL came out of the cancelled season of 2004-05 with new rules geared toward increasing offense, it became fashionable to call it a league that prized speed and skill over size and toughness. Not that it was ever better to be "big and slow" in hockey, but the new rules supposedly placed a premium on skill, regardless of size.

Much of that has been borne out in an evolved game; there is no doubt in anyone's mind that the NHL is faster than ever, and the decrease in fighting and so-called "enforcer" presences on team rosters has been plain. According to Hockeyfights.com, there was an average of 0.65 fighting majors per game in 2001-02, and 42.2 percent of all games had at least one fight. This past regular season saw an average of 0.32 fighting majors per game.

But when the Los Angeles Kings won two of three Stanley Cups from 2012 to 2014 with a roster loaded with big players, the conventional thinking went back t ...

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