Optimal player deployment is a hockey question thats never going to have a definitive answer. Each team has unique roster and character traits that necessitate different use of skaters and goaltenders and some teams are afforded luxuries other teams dont possess. But trying to extrapolate the best possible performance from a 23-man roster is a league-wide question - one thats ingrained in a hockey operations or coaching staffs ability to maximize performance for each player on the roster. Like never before, todays NHL has an insatiable appetite for competent even-strength hockey players. And there are a lot of factors at play here. For one, the phasing out of enforcers and specialists has created a window of opportunity for a wave of skill players to take on larger roles at both positions. Front offices in Vancouver and Toronto have pointed to successful models in Los Angeles and Chicago - two franchises which have enjoyed reliable production from those bringing up the rear. And teams are cognizant that first lines and first pairings win a lot of hockey games. But finding the appropriate balance between maximizing their ice-time and minimizing fatigue effects has led to further prioritization of back end guys who can pick up the slack as needed. Theres another factor at play – the creation of more even-strength ice time by the continued decrease in penalties. Take for an example, this seven-year graph of the average NHL teams total power play minutes: In just seven seasons, the NHL teams full season average power play time has dropped more than 100 minutes from 528 to 426 – a 19 per cent decline. Its substantial - and there are shot and goal differentials to be won in the additional minutes created for five-on-five play. Have organizations handled their deployment as a result of this? I think the answer is yes. Take, for one example, the comparison chart below showing ice time for forwards (meeting our minimum criteria of 245 minutes played) in 2007 and 2014: The rightward shift here should seem apparent – a higher concentration of guys playing larger minutes now as opposed to seven years ago and fewer guys picking up scrap minutes in smaller roles. The number of forwards playing ten or less minutes a night has dropped from 109 in 2007, to 65 in 2014. And the number of forwards playing between 13 and 16 minutes a night has moved from 153 in 2007 to 231 in 2014. As a group, teams may still be leaning on their star players, but theres also been a more balanced spread of total ice time than there was seven years ago. So on a league-wide scale, forwards have experienced considerable change in deployment. But what about defencemen (meeting our minimum criteria of 245 minutes played)? Other than defensive defencemen, specialists on the blue line have been far less common than specialists (be it special teams specialists or enforcers) in the forward ranks. I think a large part of that is the fact that teams only carry six defencemen into a game and at least four of those guys play significant minutes every night. That said, I anticipated less overall change - at least relative to the forwards: My intuition, of course, was wrong. The rightward shift is rather clear here, too. There are far fewer players picking up scrap minutes on the blue line today then there were seven years ago. And again, there is a noticeably larger concentration of defenders picking up significant minutes per game. The 16- to 20-plus minute band is particularly interesting. In 2007, 38 per cent of regular defenders were playing 16 or more minutes a night. In 2014, that number has jumped to 64 per cent. Combine the importance placed on puck possession and territorial control with dissipating non-even strength minutes and you have a premium placed on guys who can skate regular shifts at five-on-five. This premium is more evident in some cities than others. But at the league level, talent and depth are no longer a luxury – they are a necessity. Popular hockey analytics writer Travis Yost joins TSN as a columnist appearing every Tuesday and Thursday during the season on TSN.ca and as a frequent guest on TSN Radio. Yost has appeared as a regular contributor to The Sporting News, NHLNumbers.com, Ottawa Citizen and HockeyBuzz.com, where he served as one of the sites lead analytics writers in addition to covering the Ottawa Senators beat. Nike Air Vapormax Pas Cher . The 25-year-old McIlroy, who is from Northern Ireland, was eligible to play for either Ireland or Team GB when golf makes its return to the Olympics in Brazil for the first time since 1904. Air Max 2020 Pas Cher . Napoli beat high-flying Hellas Verona 3-0 to keep up the pressure on the top two while AC Milan had another disappointing night as four goals from teenage forward Domenico Berardi saw relegation-threatened Sassuolo come back from two goals down to win 4-3. http://www.maxnikepascher.fr/grossiste-air-max-270.html. The 57-year-old Tietjens has coached New Zealand to nine IRB World Sevens titles and to four Commonwealth Games gold medals as its only coach in the professional era. New Zealand Rugby Union chief executive Steve Tew said the re-signing was made with a focus on 2016 when sevens will be in the Olympics. Air Max 97 Pas Cher Chine .Michael Briscoe is serving a life sentence for sexual assault, kidnapping and first-degree murder in the death of 13-year-old Nina Courtepatte in 2005. Nike Air Max Plus Pas Cher . The team sent out a press release on Friday stating Poile was resting and recovering and that he will remain in hospital for further observation. The Predators were preparing for the game against the Wild when Poile was hit by a puck that flew off the ice at him where he was standing in a tunnel behind the bench.NEW YORK -- NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman cut Daniel Carcillos suspension from 10 games to six, meaning the New York Rangers enforcer could play in the Stanley Cup finals should the club elect to return him to the lineup. The commissioner made the change Tuesday after holding a hearing with Carcillo on Friday. "I respect the leagues decision and how they came to a decision," Carcillo said Tuesday at Staples Center in Los Angeles. "Im just happy I could say my piece and be a part of it, say my side of the story. I think he took it into account, and Gary was great. The league was great." Carcillo was suspended May 23 after he appeared to twice elbow linesman Scott Driscoll, who was trying to keep Carcillo away from a fight, during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference finals. The original ban would have kept him completely out of the Cup finals, even if the series went the full seven games. Now Carcillo, who has already served three, is eligible to play in Game 4. "A bit of a dead man walking there for the last week and a half, so to hear that this morning as soon as you wake up it gives you a little boost, a little bit of energy," Carcillo said. "Just to be able to be around the guys in three games will be great. Im just really encouraged." Carcillo was originally punished under Rule 40.3 for deeliberately applying physical force to an official, which carries a suspension of at least 10 games.dddddddddddd However, Bettman decided that "Carcillos actions were more appropriately deemed a violation of Rule 40.4 for deliberately applying physical force to an official for the sole purpose of getting free of such official during or immediately following an altercation." "The National Hockey League does not and will not, under any circumstances, tolerate or condone the abuse, physical or otherwise, of our on-ice officials," Bettman said in a statement. "The strict and proper enforcement of Rule 40, therefore, plays a critical role in safeguarding the integrity of the game by maintaining a safe and respectful working environment for our officials." The Stanley Cup finals begin Wednesday with the Rangers visiting the Western Conference champion Los Angeles Kings. If Carcillo is activated after the suspension, he will be playing in his third Stanley Cup finals in the last five years. He made it with the Philadelphia Flyers during the 2009-10 season and Chicago Blackhawks last season. Carcillo was traded to the Kings in July. The Rangers acquired Carcillo from the Kings in January for a conditional draft pick. Said Carcillo: "Looks like I would have been in the Cup final anyway." ' ' '