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Hockey rules explained
The rules of ice hockey in plain English, one question per page: periods, icing, offside, penalties, power plays, overtime, the rink and the puck. Each answer comes from the NHL rulebook or the league that sets the rule, with the source linked.
- How many periods are in hockey? · Hockey has three periods. How long each one is in the NHL, college, high school, youth hockey and the Olympics, and how long intermissions last.
- How long is a hockey game? · How long an NHL game takes in real time, why 60 minutes of play runs longer, and how long periods, intermissions and overtime are.
- What is icing in hockey? · What icing is in hockey, when the linesman waves it off, why a penalized team can ice the puck, hybrid icing, and where the faceoff goes.
- Hockey positions explained · The six players on the ice for each team, what centers, wingers, defensemen and goalies do, and the rules that apply only to goalies.
- Hockey terms and slang · Hockey terms and slang explained in plain English, from apple and bar down to sin bin and top shelf, with the rules behind the official ones.
- NHL overtime rules · How NHL overtime works in the regular season (3-on-3, then a shootout) and in the playoffs (full periods until a goal), plus points for an overtime loss.
- Hockey penalties list · Every common hockey penalty in one table, from tripping and hooking to boarding and fighting, with the minutes each one costs and its NHL rule number.
- What is a power play in hockey? · What a power play is, when a penalty ends early on a goal, 5-on-3s, coincidental penalties, shorthanded goals and the penalty kill.
- What is offside in hockey? · What offside is in hockey, the delayed offside and tag-up, intentional offside, where the faceoff goes, and the coach's challenge.
- What is a hat trick in hockey? · What a hat trick is in hockey, why fans throw hats, and what natural and Gordie Howe hat tricks are.
- Hockey rink dimensions · How big a hockey rink is: NHL 200 by 85 feet versus the international rink, plus where the lines, circles, crease and goal sit.
- Hockey puck size and weight · How much a hockey puck weighs, how big it is, what it's made of and why pucks are frozen before games.
- How many players are on a hockey team? · How many players each team has on the ice, how many dress for an NHL game, roster limits, and the too-many-men penalty.
- How the NHL points system works · How NHL standings points work (2 for a win, 1 for an overtime loss), the tiebreakers in order, and how teams qualify for the playoffs.