Left wing lock

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The left wing lock is a defensive ice hockey strategy similar to the neutral zone trap. In the most basic form, once puck possession changes, the left wing moves back in line with the defencemen. Each defender (including the left winger) play a zone defence and are responsible for a third of the ice each. Since there are normally only two defencemen, this tactic helps to avoid odd man rushes.

With the reinforced defensive line, the centre and right wing forecheck aggressively. Often the forecheckers will try to drive the puck over to the opponents right wing.

Although the 'lock' was made famous by the Detroit Red Wings and has been used to great success in their Stanley Cup runs in the past decade, they are not credited with inventing it. The standard story was that the lock was invented in Czechoslovakia to work against the dominant Soviet teams of the 1970s.

The simplicity of the lock has made it popular at all levels of hockey and it is not uncommon to see it implemented in youth hockey.