Ice hockey

Ice hockey belongs to the "Big 4" of the most popular US sports. We have summarized all the important information about the action-packed game on an ice rink.

History of ice hockey

The popular US sport of ice hockey developed from various ball games that arrived in North America through European settlers. The Shinney game, which was widespread in England in the 18th century, served as the basis for the modern sport of ice hockey. In America, the new sport on ice was first played by soldiers and later by students.

The first official ice hockey match in history took place on March 3rd, 1875, in Montreal, Canada. The founding of the North American professional league National Hockey League (NHL) took place in 1917. At that time, the league consisted exclusively of Canadian teams. The first team from the United States, the Boston Bruins, joined the NHL in 1924.

Ice hockey: the most important facts

An ice hockey game is fast and full of action. We explain the most important facts, rules, and routines you need to know to follow a match.

The ice hockey rink

Ice hockey is played on a 60 m long and 30 m wide ice surface, the ice hockey rink. On both sides of the rink, you will find a goal that is 1.22 m high and 1.83 m wide. However, the goals do not mark the end of the playing field in ice hockey. Also, the area behind them can be used by the players.

Several markings are visible on the ice surface. The center line and the two goal lines are red. The two blue lines divide the field into the neutral zone in the middle and the attack or defense zones at the sides. In addition, there are eight red dots marking the positions where the puck may be put down to continue playing after an interruption (e.g., after a foul).

A 1.20 m high barrier made of wood or plastic surrounds the ice rink. If the puck bounces against the wall, it remains in play. Above the boards, nets are installed around the rink to prevent the puck from flying into the audience.

The ice hockey equipment

To play ice hockey, you need special equipment, which consists of the following items and clothing:

The puck

The playing device in ice hockey is called a puck. It is a hard rubber disc measuring 2.54 cm (1 inch) in height and 7.62 cm (3 inches) in diameter and weighing between 156 g and 170 g. When hit, ice hockey pucks can reach speeds over 170 km/h.

The ice hockey stick

The puck is moved across the playing field with the help of an ice hockey stick. It is made of wood, aluminum, fiberglass, graphite, kevlar, carbon, titanium, or a mixture of several of these materials.

Field players' hockey sticks are 150 to 200 cm long and have a 25 to 40 cm long blade. For field players, the blade is at a 135-degree angle from the shaft of the stick. It is also slightly bent to the left or right to allow the puck to be lifted off the ice surface.

The hockey stick of the goalkeeper has some differences from those of the field players. For example, the lower part of the shaft of the stick is wider, the angle between the blade and the shaft is smaller, and the blade is slightly curved.

The ice hockey skates

The skates used by ice hockey players differ from those used for figure skating or speed skating in terms of shape and materials. They have steel blades about 5 mm thick with hollow grinding, which have a slight curvature in the longitudinal direction. Since they are designed for maneuverability, the blades of ice hockey skates are shorter than those in speed skating. The shoes can be adjusted to the foot with the help of lacing.

Protective equipment for field players

Since ice hockey is a very physical sport, players must wear extensive protective equipment, which usually weighs five to eight kilos. Field players wear a helmet with a visor, a mouthguard, gloves, socks, as well as chest, leg, and groin protectors.

Protective equipment for the goalkeeper

The goalkeeper, who sometimes has to defend against very fast shots, is equipped with special protective gear. He wears heavily padded leg guards that extend beyond the knee. Also, the gloves called catcher and blocker and the breastplate, which partially also covers the arms, are heavily padded. His head is protected by a helmet with a grid. All in all, the goalkeeper equipment weighs about 20 kg.

The playing time

An ice hockey match lasts 60 minutes and is divided into three periods, each 20 minutes long. However, since the clock is stopped at every interruption, e.g., after a foul, an ice hockey match usually lasts two to two and a half hours.

If no winner is determined after the regular playing time, an overtime period is added. The rules of the various ice hockey leagues differ in this context.

The teams

An ice hockey team consists of the goalkeeper and five field players, three of whom are assigned to the offense and two to the defense. In addition, a number of substitute players are waiting on the bench, but there is no limit to the maximum number of substitutes.

The referees

An ice field hockey game involves on-ice officials and off-ice officials. The team of on-ice officials – i.e., the referees who move around on the ice – is composed of two main referees and two linesmen in the higher leagues.

The off-ice officials include a game-time official, a scorekeeper, two penalty bench officials, and two goal judges or one video goal judge.

The field hockey rules and routines

These are the basic moves that you will see in an ice hockey game:

Face-Off

Every ice hockey match starts with a face-off or bully. The referee places the puck on the blue marking in the center circle of the field, and one player from each team tries to take it in order to start the first attack.

Also, after an interruption, the game is restarted with a face-off. In this case, however, the puck does not have to be played from the center of the rink but is dropped at the nearest red marker.

Offense

Ice hockey players have two options to get the puck to the opponent's goal: either by a dribble or by a pass. When performing a dribble, the player moves the puck in the desired direction with the help of his stick. The second option is to pass it to a teammate.

Special forms of pass and dribble are wall pass and wall dribble. Here, the attacker plays the puck against the wall and uses it to advance the puck or pass it to a teammate.

Offside

To make an ice hockey game more dynamic and interesting, some moves are banned. As in soccer, there is an offside rule in ice hockey. A player of the attacking team finds himself offside if he crosses the blue line between the neutral zone and the attacking zone before the puck. After a move has been stopped due to offside, a face-off is performed at the nearest red marker.

Icing

Another rule violation in ice hockey is the use of an unallowed long shot, called icing. This rule states that a pass cannot cross two red lines. Thus, no pass may be made from a position behind the center line all the way across the goal line. If a play is stopped due to icing, a face-off takes place in the half of the rink of the team that committed the infraction.

Fouls

Ice hockey is a very physical and aggressive sport, but gross unsportsmanlike conduct is whistled off as a foul. For example, so-called body fouls are not allowed, i.e., when an opponent is pushed from behind or hit with an elbow.

Stick fouls, i.e., obstructing the opponent's player with the field hockey stick, are also not allowed. Stick fouls include spearing (the stick touches the opponent's body), high-sticking (the stick touches the opponent above shoulder level), and tripping (the stick is positioned in such a way that the opponent falls over it and tumbles).

Depending on the severity of a rule violation, ice hockey distinguishes between minor fouls and major fouls, for each of which different penalties are possible.

Powerplay / boxplay

After a minor foul, the player responsible must leave the ice for two minutes; in the case of a major foul, for five minutes. This situation is known as the power play since the team with more players on the ice has a better chance of scoring a goal during this time. The game situation of the outnumbered team is known as boxplay.

Penalty

After gross unsportsmanlike conduct, a team may also be awarded a penalty shot. In this case, the player taking the shot moves alone from the center of the field toward the goal. Only the goalkeeper may attempt to prevent the score.

Scoring and game decision

An ice hockey team is awarded one point for each goal scored, and the team with the most points wins. If the score is tied at the end of regular playing time, the game goes into overtime.

In the North American professional league NHL, overtime lasts a maximum of five minutes, and the first team to score wins the match immediately (sudden death). To make the game more offensive, only the goalkeeper and three field players per team take to the ice during overtime.

Ice hockey in Canada and the USA

The best teams from Canada and the United States compete against each other in the National Hockey League (NHL).

The NHL teams

The NHL professional league consists of 32 teams, including 25 from the USA and 7 from Canada. They are divided into two conferences, Eastern and Western, which in turn are organized into two Divisions: Atlantic and Metropolitan in the Eastern Conference and Central and Pacific in the Western Conference. Each division features eight teams.

The teams remain permanently in the NHL. However, it is possible that the composition of the divisions may change, e.g., due to a team moving to another city.

The most successful teams in North American professional ice hockey to date are:

The ice hockey season in the USA

The NHL ice hockey season includes the preseason, the regular season, and the playoffs, in which teams compete for the Stanley Cup championship trophy.

The Preseason

Starting in September, before the regular NHL season begins, all NHL teams compete during a series of test games to shape the team for the upcoming season. Preseason matches do not have to take place within the NHL but can also be played against teams from other leagues and countries.

The regular season

The regular season starts at the beginning of October. A total of 32 NHL ice hockey teams will each play 82 matches in the league. The schedule includes three to four games against the teams from their own division, three games against the teams from the other division in their own conference, and two games against the teams from the other conference. The regular season ends in mid-April.

A popular NHL spectacle for the public is the Winter Classic, which takes place every year on New Year's Day. This special ice hockey game is traditionally played outdoors but is a regular season game between two chosen teams.

The playoffs

The top eight teams in each conference advance to the NHL playoffs at the end of the regular season. The playoffs are usually scheduled from April to June, with the teams from each conference competing against each other first. In the final match, the winner of the Eastern Conference faces the winner of the Western Conference to compete for the Stanley Cup, the NHL's championship trophy.

Ice hockey awards

In addition to North America's most important ice hockey trophy, the Stanley Cup, a number of other awards are given out in the NHL to the best players of the season. These are some of the prestigious ice hockey trophies:

Legends of ice hockey

The NHL has brought forth many sports stars. As an ice hockey lover, you should be familiar with the following talented athletes.

Ice hockey live streams

You are a passionate ice hockey fan, and you don't want to miss a single match of your favorite teams? In the USA, you can watch the highlights of the North American professional league NHL live at home via different streaming providers.

Streaming via ESPN+

In the USA, you can have access to NHL live streams via ESPN+. The American video streaming service, which is available at a yearly fee of $ 109.99 or a monthly fee of $ 10.99, also offers not only ice hockey but also sports such as baseball, rugby, soccer, tennis, cricket, and combat sports.

Streaming via SPORTSNET+

In Canada, you can stream all NHL matches via SPORTSNET+. All NHL national and regional games and the Stanley Cup Play-Offs are included in the standard package for $ 179.99 per year. The package also gives you access to other US sports like baseball and basketball, as well as curling and the weekly WWE wrestling shows. If you choose the premium package for $ 249.99 per year, you can watch additional NHL and WWE live event coverage, as well as the rugby league and championships.

Ice hockey on free TV

If you are in possession of a cable package, you can watch certain ice hockey live on television. The games are airing, for example, on ABC, ESPN, or TBS.

NHL merchandise

For the next sports night among friends, do you want to equip yourself with the jersey of your favorite team? You can find a variety of NHL gear and accessories in the following online stores:

• NHL Shop
• Fanatics
• Walmart

Buying NHL tickets

Do you want to watch an NHL game live in the stadium? You have several options.

NHL games in Europe

In the 2024/25 season, ice hockey fans can once again look forward to guest appearances by some NHL teams in Europe. Two matches will be shown in Prague (Czech Republic) in October 2024 and two further matches will take place in Tampere (Finland) in November 2024.

NHL games in Canada and the USA

Would you rather cheer on your favorite team in their home stadium in Canada or the USA? Book a cheap flight, reserve your ticket on Ticketmaster, apply for your ESTA, and off you go to America!

And this is how you get to the NHL games in Canada and the USA:

More US sports

Would you like to delve deeper into the world of US sports? Then our articles on American Football, baseball, and basketball are sure to interest you.