The shootout. It’s exciting. It puts you on the edge of your seat with heaps of heart pounding anxiety. Nothing but the shooter, the goalie, and a small fresh strip of ice. It can be truly captivating. Exciting as it may be, it should never, ever, and I mean EVER decide a gold medal hockey game in the Olympics.
The IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation), who determines the rules of international hockey, has set the precedent since practically the beginning of time that in the Olympics, no matter the game, whether it is group play or the gold medal game itself; if a game is tied, and remains so after a period of overtime, the game is to be decided via shootout. While that is all fine and dandy for group play, having that rule during elimination/medal games is just despicable.
The shootout does not truly determine the better team. It almost comes down more to luck rather than skill when it comes to the shootout. Granted, you need some skill to have success in the shootout, but in the end, it still does not determine who the better team is.
Over the last couple days, the USA Hockey team has had both superb and awful experiences with the shootout. Last night, in one of the greatest Olympic hockey games of all time, the Women’s US team took down Team Canada 3-2 to win their first gold medal in Olympic hockey since 1998. The US struck first, were answered by two Canadian goals, then tied the game with just over six minutes remaining in the third. The two teams then played a 20-minute overtime period, where both teams played 4-on-4, a new IIHF rule, whereas the overtime period used to be played 5-on-5.
T.J. Oshie’s heroics in the shootout against Russia have been heralded for years, but it also came during group play. Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images.
The US controlled nearly the entire overtime period but were unable to hang the game winning goal on Canada. The US killed off a late penalty, and the clock struck zero on the overtime period. This gold medal game was to be decided on a shootout. As opposed to the NHL, shootouts in Olympic hockey are five rounds, instead of three. This one needed an extra round, and the US won the shootout in the sixth round.
But just one day prior, the US Men’s team needed a win over the Czech Republic to move on to the medal round. The game went to overtime, and since it was a playoff game, the rule was to play one 10-minute overtime period of 4-on-4. No one scored, and we once again were headed for the dreaded shootout to decide a crucial game. US goalie Ryan Zapolski stopped 4/5 Czech shots, but the US could not muster a single goal in the shootout and lost the game.
The fact that these kinds of games are decided in shootouts is unbelievable. Could you imagine if Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals was decided via shootout? Absolutely not! Let the teams play for heaven’s sake. It should always come down to the golden goal in overtime. If no one scores, run it like the NHL where it is continuous overtime 5-on-5 until there is a goal. There should be no shootout. The IIHF is doing an incredible disservice to the game of hockey by having these potentially life altering games decided on five shooters from each team on a penalty shot. Sure, you get moments like T.J. Oshie (T.J. Sochi) and like I said, that’s fine for group play. But in games where a team is being eliminated or a medal is up for grabs, having it potentially end in a shootout is asinine.
The sad thing is, the IIHF most likely has no intentions of changing their rules, and we are going to continue to see crucial games end in such a distasteful way. The US lucked out, winning it in the shootout last night and I am still incredibly happy they won. But nonetheless, shame on the IIHF for their abhorrent shootout rules.
