Hockey 101

Here we hope to highlight a bunch of how-to videos and explanation of hockey terms in a glossary style resource. Feel free to share links with us and we will add them to the list!

Faceoff

Any skater can take part in the faceoff, sorry goalies, but it is most often the job of the center. A referee or linesman will signal that no more changes can be made to the players on the ice and the whistle will blow. Centers then have around five seconds (by rule) to be at the dot and squared and ready for the puck to be dropped. A linesman has the right to drop the puck if one of the participants isn’t in the faceoff circle after a few seconds.

Any number of things can kick a player from the faceoff dot. Centers try to avoid this, because they tend to be the best player for faceoffs and wingers who replace them are hard-pressed to win. This includes, but is not limited to:

One of the centers (player taking the faceoff) is not positioned properly for the drop
One of the centers takes too long in putting his stick on the ice
One of the centers tries to hinder the opponent before the puck has been dropped
Any player lines up offsides (on the wrong half of the faceoff circle)
Any player encroaches into the faceoff circle
Any player who makes physical contact with an opponent

Icing – What the heck is it exactly?

The idea behind the icing rule is that flipping the puck all the way down the end of the ice in desperation then chasing after it takes away from the flow of the game. The officials needed a way to stop players from doing this. So they made a rule where you are not allowed to pass the puck to the far side of the rink (goal line) from your side of the center ice line (known as the Red Line).

When icing is called by the referee the offending team is penalized. The do not get a penalty. The sanction imposed is that the offending team has a faceoff in their own end, near their goalie. This can lead to a dangerous situation if the other team happens to win this faceoff the may get a great scoring chance. Sometimes, however, this is face-off is worth the risk to get a whistle and an opportunity to change.

Is Icing Ever Not Enforced?

There are a few tidbits about icing that are worth noting. When a team is short one player due to a penalty being served they are allowed to ice the puck without any repercussions.

At times a team will seemingly ice the puck but the official chooses to not blow his whistle. This happens when it is deemed that a defensive player could have reached the puck before it crossed the red line. This also goes to the flow of the game, the defender should play the puck when he can. This is a judgement call by the linesmen.

Offsides Rule

The offside rule in hockey is meant to keep forwards honest. You cannot just hang out with the opposing goaltender and wait for your team to feed you the puck. In short the first thing that can enter the attacking zone is the puck. But of course, there is more to it than that.

This means that a player on the attacking team must have at least one of his skates in contact with or behind the blue line of the offensive zone before the puck completely crosses the line. A stick behind the blue line does nothing. The position of the offensive player’s skates is the determining factor of whether or not he is offside.

Deflections and Rebounds

If a defending player sends the puck out of his zone and it rebounds off one of his defending teammates and back into the zone, offensive players still in the zone are eligible to play the puck without being offside.

Delayed Offside

If a puck is sent into the offensive zone while an offensive player is in the zone, that player is considered offside. But, if the player does not play the puck or the defending team can clear the puck without coming into contact with the offside player, a delayed offside will occur. Once the offside player clears the offensive zone, the delayed offside will nullify.

Positions - Explained

An ice hockey team is made up of six players, each with a specific position and job. The job of offense is to score goals, and the defense is there to protect the goal. The following list describes each of the hockey positions:

· Goalie: Perhaps the toughest position in all of sports, the goalie is the one player who can control a team’s confidence. Their job is to keep the puck out of the net, and if they're good, they can take their team a long way. Good goalies win championships. We are fortunate to have 2 great goalies!!

· Defensemen: A team at full strength has two — one on the left side and another on the right. Nowadays, there are three primary kinds of defensemen. One is creative and offensive-minded; they like to handle the puck and lead the team up ice, but are not too physical (think Devin). Another is defensive-minded, a stay-at-home bruiser who plays a physical game and doesn’t often venture out of the defensive zone with the puck (think Margot lol). And there are those rare athletes who are a combination of the two (think Lexi).

· Right wing: The right wing works the right side of the ice for the most part. They need to be a physical player who is good along the boards and in the corner (think Pandora). The right wing is responsible for the opposition’s left defenseman (aka point) in the defensive zone.

· Left wing: Traditionally a left-handed shot, but the NHL is seeing more right-handers playing this position now, a practice picked up from the Europeans. A right-hander has a better angle to shoot from when he’s coming in on his wing. Like the right wing, the left wing needs to be able to dig out the puck from the corners and battle in front of the net.

· Center: The center quarterbacks the team at both ends of the ice (think Kelsey). A center must be good at face-offs and passing, and it doesn’t hurt if they're a good shot as well. Coaches want a lot of creativity in this position — and a lot of hockey smarts.

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