I am a hockey fan and I would never shorten the game as you say (though of course getting rid of commercials I would do, if I DVR a game). Hockey is so beautiful and exciting that I enjoy every minute (”enjoy” unless my team is losing a playoff game in which I am shredding the choice and bleeding from several arteries...). But you are right, there is less waiting in hockey than football.
Hockey doesn’t have that structure of football for the DVR. But you can get through the intermissions and the 3 commercial breaks per-period and still watch a hockey game pretty quick.