The Sneaky Dump-In
MTL OZ FC strong-side placement (2026 Playoff Playbook Part 13)
In minor hockey, we see players dump the puck into the offensive zone as hard as they possibly can…because they can. Shooting hard is satisfying, but it doesn’t always make sense tactically.
At the NHL level, less is sometimes more when it comes to setting up a successful OZ forecheck. A puck that just sort of dies in the corner, outside the goalie’s trapezoid, is often the hardest puck for the opposing team to retrieve.
The Philadelphia Flyers gently place the puck into Carolina’s zone.
CAR5 Jalen Chatfield knows that PHI94 Porter Martone is right behind him. He tries to create separation on first touch, but trips and mishandles the puck.
Martone lays the body on Chatfield, who has to rely on his partner create the exit.
In the playoffs, retrieving lifeless pucks represents a significant hazard for defensemen. This is especially applicable to mobile, undersized Ds, who prefer to keep their speed and to avoid contact.
A measured strong-side placement is highly effective against teams that employ a Swarm DZ coverage, in which both Ds attack a corner 50/50.
Here are three examples from Game 7 of the Montreal-Buffalo series.
0:00 - MTL14 Nick Suzuki fakes a hard rim to the right half wall, but changes his mind and lays the puck into the left corner
0:04 - MTL20 Juraj Slafkovsky attacks BUF4 Bowan Byram on the retrieval. Seeing his partner in trouble, BUF25 Owen Power doubles up on the MTL forward to force a quick stop
0:07 - An odd bounce catches both BUF Ds off-guard. Suzuki jumps on the loose puck and feeds MTL13 Cole Caufield in the slot
0:00 - MTL20 Slafkovsky gains the zone but is forced into a delay. The play breaks down and MTL13 Caufield slaps the puck to the left corner
0:07 - BUF Ds (#23 Mattias Samuelsson and #26 Rasmus Dahlin) swarm Slafkovsky but can’t prevent the puck from bouncing out of the pile. MTL14 Suzuki again finds Caufield in the slot. He gets two shots off while BUF’s top pair scrambles from behind the net
0:07 - MTL17 Josh Anderson runs out of space and backhands the puck into the right corner
0:11 - Anderson easily outmuscles BUF4 Byram on the retrieval, then beats BUF73 Zach Metsa with a pass
0:12 - MTL85 Alex Texier changes sides unopposed. Both BUF Ds are now on the wrong side of the play
0:14 - BUF22 Jack Quinn is the low forward tasked with protecting the front of the net. He is put in a rough spot following the failed Swarm. MTL21 Kaiden Guhle banks the puck off MTL24 Philip Danault to put the Habs up 1-0
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