Left Wing Lock

I think that our two biggest problems as a team are:

1. We don't score enough (9 goals for in 5 games, less than a 2 goal a game average).

2. We allow too many goals (21 goals against in 5 games, an average of 4.2 goals against per game).

Scoring takes time to develop, however a team-wide defensive system may be easier to implement and reap benefits from immediately. If defensive play is improved to the point that we cut our goals against in half, the result is we will be in every game up until the final buzzer.

If you've followed hockey in the in the last 12 years, you may have noticed up until recently, there was always a defense-oriented team in the finals; teams like the Redwings, Devils, Panthers, Stars, and Sabres. For nine consecutive seasons (1995-2003) each of these defense-oriented teams made it to the Stanley Cup Finals, winning seven times in that span. These teams almost ALWAYS had less firepower than their opponents (especially the Sabres and Panther, but the Devils also in the earlier years), but they managed to win by playing a simple defensive system designed to stifle offensive opportunities and capitalize on turnovers.

While we have four very polished scorers on this team, we still don't have enough firepower to compete with most teams in our league. No amount of hustle will turn a team that is rostered with a significant amount of Men's League rookies into a scoring machine. We are a new team in a league of established teams that have the benefit of years (not months) of playing together.

The way to overcome our scoring deficiencies is to bring our goals against down to the level of our opponents. We can do this by employing a defensive system that every Stormtrooper must buy into and play their part to the letter. I think one of the simplest, yet most effective defensive systems out there would be the Left Wing Lock.

What is it?: A system of controlled forechecking that disrupts the opposition before it has a chance to escape its own zone.

What does it look like?: A basic 2-3 formation in which the center and right wing cruise into the opponent's zone to forecheck. The left wing joins the two defensemen to create a three-pronged wall at the blue line.

How does it work?: The idea is that the center and right wing's presence in the zone will force the opposition to funnel the play to the left side of the ice. If they go left, they'll eventually run into the left wing, and as a result, be locked. If they go right, the defensemen will be waiting to break up the play. The offensive team faces a difficult task regardless which side is chosen.

Where does it come from?: The left-wing lock is similar to the neutral-zone trap in that it was created by international organizations with the intention of slowing the mighty Russian teams of the 1960s and 1970s. The Swedes came up with the trap. Czechoslovakia came up with the lock.

Why does it get so much attention?: Like the trap, the lock became popular once a team won the Stanley Cup with it. The Devils won in 1995 with a trap-based system. The Red Wings, under Scotty Bowman, won in 1997, 1998 and 2002 with a lock-based system.

Let's get the comments section going and start talking this out.