5 NHL rule changes hockey fans want to see implemented in the league
By Mary Clarke
4. Eliminate the puck over the glass penalty
The NHL’s most hated penalty — and for good reason — is no doubt the puck over the glass delay of game penalty. The delay of game penalty is a lengthy one — which deals with face-off violations to goaltenders knocking their nets off on purpose — but the puck over the glass ruling is the true offender in this rule.
Under Rule 63 in the NHL’s rulebook, a delay of game minor penalty can be called when “any player who deliberately shoots or bats (using his hand or his stick) the puck outside the playing area (from anywhere on the ice surface) during the play or after a stoppage of play.” The rule was put in place so players don’t toss the puck out of play deliberately, but more often than not this rule is broken accidentally by players trying to clear the zone.
Plus, the rules over what does and what does not constitute a delay of game penalty in this instance are incredibly complex, and with no replay to help get this call right, it’s often hard to tell if the play in question is a violation of the rules.
While it’s fair to say that eliminating this rule entirely would cause players to intentionally throw the puck over the glass, it’s not a rule that often is broken legitimately anyway over the course of a hockey game. Most often when the delay of game penalty is called for a puck over the glass, it is an accidental zone clearing that went just too high over the boards instead of off of them.
The delay of game penalty makes more sense for goaltenders knocking their nets off intentionally or for players not complying with the face-off rules. The puck over the glass penalty is just too confusing and too ticky-tacky to stand as a rule in today’s modern NHL.