PPM Hockey - Understanding Tactics: The "Circle of Counter-Tactics"

 

With just 14 days left in Season 52, one issue still confuses many managers—tactics. You’d think that after more than 52 league seasons, multiple NC and tournament games, and countless friendlies, tactical knowledge would be crystal clear.

Well, it is! The information is out there—within the community, among experienced players, and especially on the PPM forums. Many managers have already discovered the "Circle of Counter-Tactics" simply by asking.

The Myth of Tactical Secrecy

Some may believe there’s a hidden formula for choosing the right tactics, locked away like some ancient secret. But the truth is, there’s no mystery at all. After four seasons, countless blogs, and forum discussions, the information is readily available for those who seek it.

Breaking Down the Counter-Tactics

Most managers already know some basic tactical matchups:

• Offensive is defeated by Defense—simple logic. A strong defensive game shuts down an attacking team.
• Normal is countered by Breaking Up—since Normal relies on momentum, Breaking Up disrupts it.

That leaves four tactics—Defensive, Counterattack, Active Forecheck, and Breaking Up—to analyze further. Let’s break them down:

The Full Circle of Counter-Tactics

1. Offensive → Defeated by Defense

   • If your opponent plays an aggressive offensive game, the best response is a strong defensive approach to neutralize their attacks. This one is basic logic.  If you want to shut down a highly offensive team, you play an equally good defensive game.

2. Normal → Defeated by Breaking Up

   • The Normal tactic thrives on flexibility and momentum. Breaking Up disrupts this by stopping the flow of the game, making it the ideal counter. The normal tactic is thought of as the most balanced approach, neither offensive nor defensive.  This style relies on an open game where a team can change tactics on the fly, play defense where needed and use momentum to its advantage.  The key to shutting down a normal tactic is to stop the momentum, hense the Breaking Up tactic being the best option.

3. Breaking Up → Defeated by Counterattack

   • Since Breaking Up aims to disrupt play, a team using Counterattack can take advantage of these breaks, forcing turnovers and capitalizing on quick transitions. As previously mentioned, the Breaking Up tactic uses starts and stops to break the momentum of a team.  What you would want then, is a tactic that can use these attempted breaks in play to start an attack. Counterattack is that tactic.  When the opposition tries to slow down the game by forcing an offside or freezing the puck, your team uses Counterattack to force penalties and turnovers, therefore giving you the puck to start an attack.

4. Counterattack → Defeated by Active Forecheck

   • Counterattack strategies rely on waiting for the opponent to make mistakes. Active Forecheck flips the script by applying pressure, forcing errors before they can happen. This is possibly the tactic that people get most confused about.  Well, this one and the next one.  A team that uses counterattacks is never easy to beat because any error you make is often going to result in them getting the puck.  You need to counter this with the opposite style of move.  While they are waiting patiently for you to cause an error and give them the attack, you need to pressure them into doing the same.  A good quality, solid forecheck is often enough to shut down any team looking for you to make an error.  Take the game to them, and you should win.

5. Active Forecheck → Defeated by Offensive

   • A high-pressure forechecking team can be outpaced by a fast, skilled offensive strategy that breaks through their aggressive defensive plays. We now know that a patient counterattack game is defeated by a puck pressured forecheck.  But how do you beat a team that is putting the pressure on you?  Playing a patient defensive game is going to play into their hands.  Playing a hard forecheck game is counterproductive as that's what they are doing to you.  Instead, you need a tactic that is fast paced enough to keep up with them, but skilled enough to get around their defensively minded forechecking forwards.  A solid offensive game is what you need.

6. Defensive → Defeated by Normal

   • A heavily defensive team is difficult to break down, but a well-balanced Normal tactic allows for controlled, patient play, exposing gaps in their structure. Lastly we have the tactic that has won many teams championships over the years.  The defensive tactic is a killer and that pesky neutral zone trap that helped the New Jersey Devils and Dallas Stars win games is a horrid beast to get around.  At least, it is if you don't play a solid all round game.  If a team is playing defense most the game, you are going to want to play along with them, looking for gaps and finding their weaknesses.  The Normal tactic, while the most balanced in the game (allegedly), is the best to use here.

The Complete Tactical Cycle

This creates a tactical loop:
Normal → Defensive → Offensive → Forechecking → Counterattack → Breaking Up → Normal

Final Thoughts

There is data proving these tactical relationships with 99.99% accuracy. While some websites document this information, I won’t be sharing links—do your own research!

Next time you prepare for a match, analyze your opponent, choose your tactics wisely, and don’t be afraid to take some risks. Success comes to those who adapt!

 

 

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