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Calgary Flames’ Brian Burke wants to increase ice surface size

By Darrell Samuels

Oct 23, 2014; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; General view before the game between the Calgary Flames and the Carolina Hurricanes at Scotiabank Saddledome. Calgary Flames won 5-0. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 23, 2014; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; General view before the game between the Calgary Flames and the Carolina Hurricanes at Scotiabank Saddledome. Calgary Flames won 5-0. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /
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Brian Burke has a plan in mind to increase NHL arenas

Brian Burke is a man of many words. Quite often, people have to run to their dictionary or Wikipedia to see exactly what he is meaning. Also, he was not known to mince his words as an NHL General Manager when he was associated with the Hartford Whalers (now Carolina Hurricanes), Vancouver Canucks and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

As the current Calgary Flames President, he is expressing his strong opinion yet again. This time, it is not about a player, a team or management personnel. It is about the state of the game and one way that he would like to improve the quality of play.

Burke would like to see the sizes of ice surfaces grow.

“I’ve felt this way for a long time,” Burke said via TSN. “When I was GM of the [Vancouver] Canucks, I felt the ice was too congested for the size and skill we had on our team. I thought the size of the ice surface affected my team’s ability to excel. That’s where it started for me.”

In National Hockey League circles, it is often debated whether the ice surfaces in the United States and Canada should be the same size as they are overseas. It has been believed that a larger rink would allow players to maneuver successfully. It would also allow for the ‘big’ players of the 21st century to better utilize their skating skills. 40 years ago, players were smaller and the ice surface size was never a debated topic. The NHL has frequently tried to change rules of the game to allow players to adjust to the smaller ice surface. They have moved from five-on-five hockey in overtime to four-on-four. Recently, the league has even gone down to three-on-three during the five-minute overtime periods.

If Burke’s suggested increased rink size does come to pass, it would be a very costly proposition to all 30 franchises. Recently, there have been ongoing discussions of various cities in North America coming into the league as an expansion team and it would be an added cost for them to work their way through. There are discussions that NHL hockey could go to the city of Las Vegas or Quebec City in Canada. There are also discussions about Kansas City or Seattle attempting to get NHL franchises. Some existing organizations are already having threats of relocation and if they had this extra cost it would further impact the game.

Burke’s vision should be considered at least. However, there would be a lot of work to be done and that would affect a lot of people as well as the financial aspect of the game.

What do you think NHL fans? Do you think arena sizes need to be increased?

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