(VIDEO): Pavel Datsyuk demos new tool aimed at increasing goal scoring.

It's no secret that scoring has been on the decline in the NHL in recent years. Only 5.34 goals were scored per game last season, and the scoring rate has only risen over six goals per game once (2005-06) since 1995-96. That’s way down from the scoring rate in the ’80s. In 1981-82, the league averaged more than eight tallies per game. A lot of the blame can be laid at goaltenders feet, as their increased athleticism and equipment size are clearly the culprit. Tom Bahls, has developed an increasingly effective practice tool to combat the epidemic. It is called the  the Bar Down Shooter Tutor and it is becoming very popular with teams, and that includes the NHL.  A traditional model of the tutor encourages players to aim for the four corners. Unfortunately, it is ineffective at a pro level, as nearly every elite goaltender now uses the Butterfly technique in nets. Bar Down’s version eliminates all low shots, as a butterfly goalie would, and by using mesh for the goalie’s “body” outlined by dark black piping, teaches the shooter to aim past the goalie as opposed to picking a corner. “Coaches will take players on the ice prior to practice or keep players after, and they’ll work specifically on quick-shot drills, backhand drills, things like that. Normally they don’t have a goalie, or if they do, they’ll burn the goalie out by keeping him on the ice for 45 minutes, so this is a tool a coach can use with one or more players and still get the feel of shooting on an actual goaltender,” Bahl explains. It has certainly struck a chord with one of the NHL's most elite playmakers. That being Red Wings superstar Pavel Datsyuk. Datsyuk has endorsed the tutor and Bar Down’s new reaction board as part of a signature series. “We’re pretty excited to have his involvement with the product as such a recognizable name. The Magic Man of hockey is really liking our product,” Bahl beams. Here is a video of Datsyuk testing out the finished product first hand.