Professional
hockey may seem like nothing more than grown men looking for a chance to fight
with and beat each other, but there is much more to the game than throwing
punches and spending time in the penalty box.
Hockey is
played on an ice rink that is enclosed by Plexiglas. Two blue lines and a red
line are marked on the rink and divide it into zones. The area where your goal
is located and the one that you are trying to protect is the defending zone.
This area is separated from the neutral zone by one of the blue lines. The red
line simply divides the rink in half. The other blue line is the beginning of
the offensive zone and is the area where you are shooting to score. There are
also nine faceoff spots on the ice. A faceoff is what starts the game from the
get-go and also what resumes play. It is when the referee drops the puck
between opposing centers.
Goals are
how points are accumulated and whichever team has more goals at the end of the
three 20-minute periods that make up a game, wins. If time expires with a tied
game, the game moves into five minutes of overtime. If there is still a tied
game, the teams are sent into a shootout. Three shooters will go one-on-one with
the goalie from the center faceoff spot. If there is still a tie after both teams
shoot, the game moves into “sudden death”. Each team must take the same number
of shots for it to remain fair. Please note though that a shootout is not used
in the Stanley Cup playoff. Instead, teams will continue to play until one
scores to come away with the win.
Both teams
have six totals players on the ice, one being a goaltender. The red median line,
also, is a line the goaltender cannot cross. Goalies commonly don’t leave the
crease (the area in front of the net), but in hockey, regardless of what
position a player is assigned, he is permitted anywhere on the ice.
Many are
confused by hockey because there seems to be players jumping on and off the ice
at any given moment. This is because substitutions can happen at any time and
don’t require a pause in the game such as a timeout. Substitutions are also
unlimited.
The
positions in hockey are forwards, defensemen, and as previously mentioned, a
goalkeeper.
Forwards
can further be separated into center, right wing, or left wing. Note that there
are three positions meaning that there would be one player for each slot and
then two defensemen.
A right
wing, as you may have guessed, plays on the right side of the ice. These
players need to be able to fish the puck out of the corner and be aggressive
enough to make his way in front of the net to get better position.
Left wing
players use to be predominantly left-handed shooters, but more NHL players who
are right handed have been playing this position in recent years. They play on
the left side of the ice and have the same responsibilities as right wing
players.
Centers are
commonly referred to as “the quarterback on ice”. They are the ones who usually
generate the offense and lead the attack on the opposing team’s net.
The
goalkeeper’s job is obviously to keep the puck out of the net so to prevent the
other team from scoring.
Two
defensemen, one on the left, and the other on the right, round out the team on
the ice. The defense tries to make the goalie’s life easier by breaking up
passes, blocking shots, and just keeping the puck away from the net. They also
aid the offense by getting the puck to their own team members.
There are
three main rules that referees will look out for outside of penalties which
I’ll talk about shortly. The first is offsides. This is when a member (usually
offense since they are most likely to be attacking the net) is in front of the
puck over the defending team’s blue line. In the elementary playground days
this was referred to as “cherry picking”. It prevents players from camping out
in front of the net and waiting for an easy pass in front of the goal. An
offside pass is when a player sends the puck up to his teammate who has already
crossed the red center line. The last main rule is icing. This is when a player
shoots from his own side of the rink and if it remains untouched and travels
across the red center line as well as the opponent’s blue line. There is no
icing though when defending a power play.
Now into
the fun of hockey - the contact and penalties!
Body checking, please realize now,
is considered okay but only to an opposing player who has possession of the
puck. Body checks that target the head are illegal. A player can use his
shoulder, hip, or torso to ram into an opponent.
There are three different types of
penalties, minor, major, and misconduct and these penalties lead to power
plays. Power plays are when a team is at a disadvantage because they are short
a man (sometimes two) because of penalty box situations.
Minor
penalties have a few subcategories but all have the same outcome – two minutes
in the penalty box with no substitutions. If the opposing team scores before
the two minutes is over the penalty time still ends.
Penalties
that obstruct an opponent could include tripping, holding, or interfering when
the opposing player doesn’t have the puck.
Those
penalties that are connected with the stick include spearing, slashing,
high-sticking (hitting an opponent in the head or face) and cross-checking
(hitting an opponent with the stick).
Some other
fouls such as elbowing, kneeing, and checking from behind can also lead to
penalty time.
Major
penalties cause a player to be dismissed from the ice for five minutes.
Fighting is the most major penalty and if both teams have players sent to the
penalty box for fighting, substitutions can be made. If it’s only one team
though, no substitutions are allowed. It is usually deemed fighting when a
player drops his gloves and throws a punch or punches.
Misconduct
leads to ten minutes in the penalty box and can be called for different forms
of unsportsmanlike conduct or if a player commits a second major penalty.
Penalty shots are awarded when a
foul is committed that might otherwise had led a team to score. The team who
was fouled now gets a chance to regain a shot on goal that was interrupted. The
referee places the puck on the center faceoff spot and on his command, the
player taking the shot will attempt to score – it is a one-on-one situation
with the goalie.
Hockey
really isn’t that hard to understand. It’s a combination of soccer (similar
rules) combined with lacrosse (similar styles of play).
With the
National Hockey League (NHL) season opening on Tuesday, October 1st,
I hope you got a better understanding of the game and will know what you’re
watching for now.
See you in
the faceoff ;)
Xoxo,
~Francesca
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