Exposing the 1-3-1
The Tampa Bay Lightning's 1-3-1 defensive scheme was exposed to a national audience last night against the Philadelphia Flyers. The 1-3-1, for those who don't know what it is...is this. One player stands at the top of the opponent's zone, three players stand in the neutral zone and one player stands in the middle of their own zone. None of them move toward the puck. So, what did the Flyers do? They skated in circles in their own zone, making no passes and not advancing the puck. As a Flyers fan for 39 years, I had NEVER seen anything like it and was surprised when all the analysts actually blamed the Lightning and praised the Flyers for their counter non-action. It led to a very boring first period but I have never laughed so much in my life. The more the Tampa fans booed, the more I laughed.