Roger Neilson
Coach Neilson changed how goaltenders are used in hockey, and several rules have been introduced to the game because of how he would replace the goalie in certain situations. On penalty shots, he would have a defenseman on the ice in place of a goaltender and instructed him to charge directly at the opposing player because the coach realized that the other player would find it a lot harder to score this way. To prevent players from doing this, the NHL mandated that during penalty shots, a goalie has to be used on defense and he can only leave the crease once the puck has been touched. There’s also another rule which was created because Coach Neilson would pull the goaltender in last-minute situations and replace him with another player on offense, but told him to leave his stick in front of the net in order to block shots. The very next season, a rule was instituted to make the practice illegal.
Roger Neilson
Pat Venditte
The modern-day pitcher Pat Venditte had a rule made specifically for him because he could pitch with either hand. Pitchers generally have a definite advantage if they pitch to a batter that bats with the same hand, so Venditte always positioned himself optimally. However, it became a problem when he pitched to a switch hitter, a batter who has the ability to bat from either side since it resulted in a never-ending cat-and-mouse game where both players kept changing sides. The referee had to intervene to stop this from going on forever, and it was interestingly ruled then and there that the batter needed to declare first. Nevertheless, a few weeks later, the official rules reversed it and introduced the Venditte Rule, which states that the pitcher has to declare which hand he will be using to pitch with and continue using the same hand for the whole at-bat.
Pat Venditte
