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gord · 01-06-2026, 01:21 PM

Related to power play tactics, I just read this in an article on The Athletic about Adam Oates:

All 32 teams utilize some variation of Oates’ 1-3-1, which includes only one defenseman, two flankers, a “bumper” in the high slot and an additional player at the net front — who isn’t often utilized as a traditional net-front guy. It is, exclusively, the only power-play formation that any team uses regularly in the NHL today.

There are some differences from team to team based on personnel, but over the past decade, the task for contemporary penalty-killers has fundamentally shifted. Fifteen years ago, penalty-killers would watch tape to figure out: “What is this team going to try to do?”

Now that isn’t even a question. There’s zero suspense. Contemporary NHL penalty-killers know they’re going to see the 1-3-1. The question now has shifted to “Who does this team have doing the things that we see from every team, every night?”

Absolute tactical uniformity in how teams approach manufacturing offense in five-on-four situations may be the single largest tactical shift in the NHL over the past decade — and that can be tied directly to the success that Oates had in Tampa, New Jersey and especially Washington.

01-06-2026, 01:21 PM	#37
gord Major Leagues Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 368	Related to power play tactics, I just read this in an article on The Athletic about Adam Oates: All 32 teams utilize some variation of Oates’ 1-3-1, which includes only one defenseman, two flankers, a “bumper” in the high slot and an additional player at the net front — who isn’t often utilized as a traditional net-front guy. It is, exclusively, the only power-play formation that any team uses regularly in the NHL today. There are some differences from team to team based on personnel, but over the past decade, the task for contemporary penalty-killers has fundamentally shifted. Fifteen years ago, penalty-killers would watch tape to figure out: “What is this team going to try to do?” Now that isn’t even a question. There’s zero suspense. Contemporary NHL penalty-killers know they’re going to see the 1-3-1. The question now has shifted to “Who does this team have doing the things that we see from every team, every night?” Absolute tactical uniformity in how teams approach manufacturing offense in five-on-four situations may be the single largest tactical shift in the NHL over the past decade — and that can be tied directly to the success that Oates had in Tampa, New Jersey and especially Washington.