Here's another one. Larkin vacates the middle to change when PIT had the puck.
On one hand, everyone else changed so he didn't want to give up the whole ice, but his change opened up the space for the pass through the zone that ended with a goal against. DET is in trouble.
COACHES: Here is a GREAT teaching clip on the importance of defending the middle first, especially in transition.
We see this a lot in youth hockey - when the puck gets turned over, players will loop out towards the wall to get back in transition. When the most important part of the ice is defending the middle.
Watch the two CAR players Staal and Ehlers on this clip. When MTL gets the puck, they turn outside the dots rather than stop and take the middle away and come back through the guts of the ice. MTL makes a pass through the middle and attack the most dangerous part of the ice on entry leading to the goal.
Awesome teaching clip to show your players!