Interesting take on Ottawa / Duchesne from a fan

[Psych3man]

"I watch the Senators regularly and they're thin on ability beyond a few top guys. How they manage to have a winning record right now is playing the 1-3-1 trap that was played by the Cup-winning Devils team more than a decade ago. The trap is used by low-ability teams to level the playing field with higher-ability teams by choking off the latter's offence and relying on turnovers to counterattack. It worked great when opposing coaches were unfamiliar with it, and Ottawa's use of it might have surprised some opposing teams early this season, but hockey people have had more than ten years to figure out a system that beats the trap. Vegas used just such a system recently and spanked the Senators in a game most casual observers thought the Senators would win handily. Yet Vegas are exceptionally disciplined, and Ottawa will still feast on highly talented but low-discipline teams that keep turning the puck over in the neutral zone or at one of the blue lines. tl;dr Duchene won't make all that much difference in Ottawa's system and is, in fact, less suited to it than Turris was, and far less familiar with it. I don't expect him to be the saviour who wins Ottawa the cup while Ottawa is still Karlsson + Duchene + a bunch of third-liners and fifth and sixth defencemen."

 

[PuckinUgly57]

The 1-3-1 is the same system Tampa Bay played from 2011-2013 with Guy Boucher as the coach. Guess who is the head coach of the Senators? Yeah, that Guy.

It's a weak system as stated for low talent teams. There are a few ways to beat the trap, the easiest being two quick passes from side to side and up, you will get around at least 2 of the 3 players standing up. I saw this all to much and as a defenseman you quarterback the breakout, if you have intelligent teammates you don't even need to say anything, they know what to do.

My favorite however, which was done when I had some skilled speedsters as teammates, was hit our blue and lob it over them into their zone - our forwards would know exactly what I was doing, would get through the neutral zone with some speed onside, break into the zone and recover the puck. The guy employs strategies best left behind in Squirt and beer leagues.

Pronger actually mocks Boucher and his system here. As the screen pans out, you'll see 3 Lightning players standing up at the red line.

 

[PuckinUgly57]

Just to add to this one, the original fan post doesn't mention the 1-3-1 (which is a variation of the trap) and all traps in general (Detroit's old LW Lock was also a variation, essentially turning the LW into a third defenseman) have been around forever.

Cup winning teams - all teams actually - employ the trap at various points in a game if necessary. The Devils brought it back as their primary system in the 1995 season to win their first Cup but it has been going back to the 40s and 50s.