Over the summer, after joining Peter Laviolette\u2019s staff in Los Angeles, Associate Coach Phil Housley knew he had his work cut out for him in a specific area of the game.<\/p>\n
That was 3-on-3 play.<\/p>\n
The Kings were record-setting in that area the season before and not in the right way. The Kings set NHL records for overtime games played and defeats in either overtime or the shootout. Over the course of a season, 20 defeats beyond the scheduled 60 minutes adds up. You can look at it as 20 points gained, which it technically is, but it\u2019s also 20 points dropped. When you finish three points shy of home-ice advantage and five points shy of a division title, it becomes that much more glaring.<\/p>\n
With the coaching change over the summer, it was an area that needed to change. Housley said he watched several hours of film specifically in 3-on-3 situations. I want to share his full quote from back in August, lightly edited, which I think shows just how much emphasis and importance the Kings\u2019 coaching staff put into those situations, even before a single player stepped foot on the ice for training camp. <\/p>\n
\u201cLavi and I have a huge agreement on having a plan 3-on-3 and 4-on-4, it\u2019s really important that guys understand the situation 3-on-3,\u201d Housley said. \u201cI mean, we can talk about possession till we\u2019re blue in the face, right? That\u2019s the main thing, possession, but I think there\u2019s got to be some plans in certain areas of the ice, especially n the defensive zone. In the offensive zone, when you\u2019re getting into certain areas, you better have a plan where they can\u2019t double up and now you lose possession. So, we have a really good, structured plan 3-on-3 and 4-on-4 and I think it\u2019s going to help. I know in New York, our first year, when we won the President\u2019s Trophy there, we had great success in overtime. I think you\u2019ve got to allow the players to use their skills, that\u2019s why they\u2019re out there, but also within that framework is just have an idea what certain things might be a breakout, might be a neutral-zone regroup. What are we going to do with the puck when we have total possession in the offensive zone and it\u2019s man-on-man? What are the ways we can create confusion and maybe see some better ice? There\u2019s a lot of things that go into it. [In watching last season\u2019s 3-on-3] footage, I can see that just the structure a little bit could be better. I\u2019m not trying to knock anybody but I think that played into it. I think they were attached to their guy too much. You can be in a 1-2 sort of a triangle and that will eventually evolve when you get in the defensive zone. So, there\u2019s some ways I think we can improve, especially when we don\u2019t have the puck.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
The planning element is one thing but the proof has to be in the pudding. <\/p>\n
During training camp, the Kings practiced 3-on-3 play. Into the regular season, the Kings practiced 3-on-3 play. They are tough situations to replicate, but the Kings did it in what I felt was a pretty unique way. They played it like an actual 3-on-3 session, with time on the clock and line changes. They went to a shootout after, to replicate that feeling as well, and then ran it back again. We saw this multiple times. Five-minute increments, different three-man units and they tried their best to replicate game situations. <\/p>\n
There is a lot about overtime that you really cannot practice. In the moment, players have to make plays based on how they see the game unfold. However, I think it always works better when you do it with a structure, with a plan, with an idea of what you want to accomplish. That seems to be what the coaching staff here feels as well, with Laviolette talking about the same kind of thing. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s definitely a method to the madness and there\u2019s got to be a buy-in to that and I think the players bought in,\u201d Head Coach Peter Laviolette said. \u201cThere is a lot of review that went through it. There\u2019s things that we talk about prior to games and then after games, the overtime games, and reviewing that. I think the players have done a really good job of executing them. I actually think that we should be better than 2-2 in overtime, just based on the fact that we controlled a lot of the play. We\u2019ve played 12 minutes and I thought we controlled 10 of it, but we\u2019re 2-2. So, we go back and we look at the ones that we didn\u2019t win and maybe things we could have done better inside of those.\u201d<\/p>\n
QUINTON. BYFIELD. https:\/\/t.co\/Wyxl1fs6e1<\/p>\n