Last Word on Sports is proud to present their hockey podcast, On the Powerplay with Ben and Dave. Join Ben Kerr and Dave Gove each week as they take a look around the Hockey World focusing on the big issues of the NHL and elsewhere.

The big news of the week is the changes to the All-Star game format. The game will now be a mini-tournament featuring 3 on 3 teams from each division. The boys discuss how the teams will be picked, what it means for voting, the $1 million in prize money, changes to the Skills Competition, and if this will make for a better game. They also discuss the loss of the All-Star Draft.

There are also rumors out of New York that Islanders defenceman Travis Hamonic wants to be traded. Apparently the move is for family reasons, and so he wants to move to the Western Conference. The boys look at what the Isles can expect for their defenceman and which teams should be the most interested in making a move.

Dave and Ben then discuss the latest in the Los Angeles Kings incident were prospect Patrik Bartosak has been arrested on domestic violence charges. They look at how the Kings have handled this and what the team learned from last year.

Alex Ovechkin scored on Thursday, to finally become the all-time leading NHL goal scorer amongst Russian born players. The boys ask if he is the best Russian ever.

The Boys look at the New York Rangers. The win streak is over, but it was impressive. However is their play on the ice as good as the record shows?

Ben then rants about Alexander Semin being benched in Montreal, and the internet reaction to it. He talks about Corsi/Fenwick and why those advanced stats are good, but sometimes you need to dig deeper and look at zone starts, qual comp, and scoring chances as well.

Dave does his weekly rant, and this one is about the NHL schedule and the lack of west coast games this week.

All that and more on the powerplay.

OTPP: Hamonic Rumors, All-Star Changes, Ovechkin Milestone, Semin Benching and More

On the Powerplay is brought to you by Chill Puck. Ensure your drinks are always cold with the Chill Puck. Type in the code “lastword” at Chillpuck.com to get free shipping. Sign up to our newsletter to be entered to win a free three pack of Chill Pucks.