Question: What is "the trap" and how do players line up when playing it?
Answer:
It's full name is the "neutral zone trap," but the term is often used to describe any passive, no-risk, defense-first strategy. If the game you're watching is very dull, with few quality shots on goal, chances are one team is playing a variation on the trap. Trapping teams don't pursue opponents, don't attack the puck and often don't seem very interested in scoring.
Simply put, it works something like this:
- Team A has the puck in its own zone and is starting an attack.
- Team B - the trapping team - retreats to the neutral zone (between the bluelines).
- When the Team A puck-carrier crosses his own blueline, he sees a lot of wrong-colored jerseys, little room to maneuver and not many options for a safe pass.
- He ices the puck, tries to force a high-risk pass, or turns it over by trying to skate through too many bodies.
- If they retrieve the puck and see an opportunity, Team B gets a decent scoring chance going back the other way. What's more likely is that they throw the puck down the ice and line up in their trapping formation again.
- Repeat as necessary.
