NHL Rule Changes Announced: Latest Details, Comments and Reaction

The NHL is about to revamp its rule book yet again after a vote Wednesday by the game's general managers. 

According to TSN's Bob McKenzie, teams will play next season with three skaters apiece during overtime periods:

"

Bettman: Rule changes approved. 3 on 3 OT for 5 minutes, Coaches' challenge on goalie int and offside goals, faceoff rule.

— Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) June 24, 2015"

The intention of the new three-on-three format is to decrease the likelihood of games ending in penalty shootouts, something NHL GMs have wanted to get rid of.

"The managers just really felt they'd like to end more games in an overtime situation versus the shootout," Nashville Predators GM David Poile told ESPN.com's Scott Burnside of the rule change. "I think it's going to be unbelievably exciting and I think we're going to get a lot of games that are going to be ended in overtime so I think we're going to get our wish."

According to Burnside, the shootout decided 170 regular-season games last year, 13.8 percent of the full schedule. The NHL implemented it in the 2005-2006 season after the prior year was lost because of a lockout.

With six skaters on the ice, this will create more space and plenty of chances in overtime compared to the old four-on-four format. The minor league AHL experimented with the three-on-three format and seven-minute overtime period last season, per a report from CBS Sports' Chris Peters.

"I saw a lot of it at the American [Hockey] League level," Philadelphia Flyers GM Ron Hextall told Burnside. "It's exciting. It's free-flowing. It's chance-for-chance. It's tough on a goalie but it's exciting."

Also among the rule changes that McKenzie reported is the opportunity for coaches to challenge goals on possible goaltender interference and offside calls. This expands the NHL's usage of replay, which it only used to deem if goals were good or not.