DETROIT -- Since the rate of NHL games being decided in a shootout has decreased substantially this season, there was little talk during Tuesday's general managers meeting in Toronto about changing the regular-season overtime format.

League executives agreed to have further discussions at the GM meetings March 14-16 in Boca Raton, Fla.

"I said, 'Let's use the rest of the year, monitor the numbers and get a better read on it,' " Red Wings general manager

said.

After nearly 15 percent of games were decided in a shootout last season -- an all-time high since the rule was implemented in 2005-06 --

to have more regular-season games decided in overtime.

He suggested expanding the five-minute, four-on-four OT to eight minutes, with four minutes of four-on-four play and four minutes of three-on-three play before going to a shootout.

NHL SHOOTOUTS

The percentage of NHL games decided in a shootout since the rule was implemented following the lockout:

• 2005-06 -- 11.79

• 2006-07 -- 13.33

• 2007-08 -- 12.68

• 2008-09 -- 12.93

• 2009-10 -- 14.96

• x-2010-11 -- 7.88

x-Through Monday

"I think there are some managers that support it," Holland said. "The biggest thing is the numbers. If overtimes and shootouts are down this year, it will probably continue to stay on the back burner."

Only 7.9 percent of games thus far have gone to a shootout. The historical average is 13 percent.

"As long as the system is doing its job and shootout numbers are constant with other years, there's probably not a big need to change," Holland said. "But we need to get a bigger picture."

If nothing else, Holland hopes the league considers having a dry scrape of the ice before overtime, like it does for the center strip of the ice from net to net before the shootout.

Better ice in OT, Holland said, should result in more goals.

"The biggest issue if you expand overtime beyond five minutes, in talking with people from the league, is what do you do with the ice?" he said.

Holland said the league and general managers had positive feedback for the new rule concerning hits to the head. They think the disciplinary measures -- there have been two suspensions and a handful of fines -- have reduced the frequency of blindside head shots.

Florida general manager Dale Tallon's proposal for a "coach's challenge" was shot down.

After the Panthers lost a game in Toronto earlier this season when the referees missed a goaltender interference call, Tallon suggested giving coaches the ability to challenge one play per game.