History
At the Olympics
Schedule
Ice Hockey Players To Watch
FAST Facts
Ice Hockey and YOU!
Getting in Shape
Safety Tips
USA Hockey
Equipment and Clothing
Ice Hockey Basics
     The Game
     The Team
     Playing Zones
     Officials
     Ice Hockey Techniques
     The Rules
     Penalties
     Glossary
Youth Ice Hockey
     Players´ Code of Conduct
     Parents´ Code of Conduct
     Coaches´ Code of Conduct
Where to Play Ice Hockey
Resources
Credits/References

Information on this sport's history, Olympic history and events, and the sports terms and glossary has been provided by www.NBCOlympics.com and www.Olympics.com.

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HISTORY

Men's ice hockey.

While the origins of ice hockey are unclear, it's widely accepted that the British are responsible for bringing hockey to North America. Soldiers stationed in Nova Scotia, Canada, played the earliest games. By the 1870s, a group of college students at McGill University in Montreal were organizing games and had developed the first known set of hockey rules. In accordance with this new set of regulations, known as "McGill rules," a puck was substituted for a rubber ball, and the number of players on a team was set at nine.

Women's Ice Hockey.

Most people are surprised to learn that women's hockey has a history that dates back more than 100 years, beginning with the earliest known film image of women involved in a game of ice hockey — featuring Isobel Preston, daughter of Lord Stanley Preston (of Stanley Cup lore) playing hockey on a flooded lawn in the winter of 1890. There is little doubt that women played the sport well before the first newspaper account of a game between two unnamed women's teams appeared in the Ottawa Citizen on February 11, 1891. That game is regarded as the start of women's ice hockey. Over the span of a century, girls and women have pursued their interest in the sport, and today that segment continues to be one of the fastest growing in ice hockey.

ICE HOCKEY AT THE OLYMPICS

Ice hockey joined the Olympic program at the 1920 Antwerp Summer Games. Four years later, men's hockey made its Winter debut in Chamonix and has been part of every Winter program. Women's hockey became an Olympic event at the 1998 Nagano Olympic Games. The Nagano Games welcomed professionals for the first time, and hockey's biggest international stars brought a new level of competitiveness to Olympic hockey. International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) rules govern Olympic competition; the rules of the National Hockey League (NHL) differ in some respects.

Players

Each team has five skaters and one goalie on the ice at any one time, and substitutions occur as often as every 40 to 60 seconds. Each men's team shall be allowed a maximum of 20 players and two goalkeepers for a total of 22 players.  Each women's team is allowed two goalies and 18 players for a total of 20 players. The women may also register an emergency goalie who does not dress with the team and who will only receive accreditation if a primary goalie is injured.

A regular game consists of three 20-minute periods, with 15-minute intermissions after the first and second periods. Teams change ends for each period. If a tie occurs in a medal-round game in which a winner must be determined, a 10-minute sudden-death overtime period will be played subsequent to another 15-minute intermission. There will be a 20-minute overtime in the gold-medal game. If the game is still tied after the overtime period, penalty shots will be employed immediately to determine a winner. Here are the shootout regulations:

! Each team will designate five shooters and two goalies

! Any player whose penalty had not been completed when the sudden-death overtime ended is not eligible to be nominated as one of the shooters and must remain in the penalty box

! Once named, players may only be replaced in the event of an injury or penalty

! The referee will call the two captains to the center of the ice and flip a coin to determine which team takes the first shot

! The goalies defend the same goal as in overtime and may be switched after each shot

! Players on both teams will take shots on an alternating basis until a decisive goal is scored. The remaining shot will not be taken.

! If the score is still tied after five shots by each team, five new players from each team will be designated to shoot. The game is finished as soon as a duel of two players brings the decisive result. If the game is still tied after the five shooters, more players are nominated.

! Only the decisive goal will count in the result of the game. It will be credited to the player who scored the goal

CHECK THE OLYMPICS SCHEDULE FOR DATES AND TIMES OF MEN´S AND WOMEN´S HOCKEY EVENTS

The following link will take you to the schedule page for the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympic Games, where you can view Olympic schedules by date, by individual sport or by sports venue:

Olympic Schedule (or click here for a printable schedule of the Olympic Games)

Olympic Television Schedule

ICE HOCKEY PLAYERS TO WATCH AT THE OLYMPICS

Name: Mike Modano, DOB: 6/7/70, Hometown: Livonia, Mich., Notes: Scored two goals in 1998 Olympics

Name: Brian Leetch, DOB: 3/3/68, Hometown: Corpus Christi, Tex., Notes: Tallied one goal and one assist in 1998 Olympics

Name: Chris Chelios, DOB: 1/25/62, Hometown: Chicago, Ill., Notes: Scored two goals in 1998 Olympics

Top World Athletes

Name: Dominik Hasek (Czech Republic), DOB: 1/29/65, Hometown: Buffalo, N.Y., Notes: Won the gold medal at the 1998 Olympics

Women

Name: Cammi Granato, DOB: 3/25/71, Hometown: Downers Grove, Ill., Notes: Had the highest point total with 13 at the 2001 World Championships

Name: Karyn Bye, DOB: 5/18/71, Hometown: River Falls, Wis., Notes: Had a plus/minus of 16 at the 2001 World Championships

Name: Sarah Tueting, DOB: 4/26/76, Hometown: Winnetka, Ill., Notes: Had a 93.33 save percentage and two shutouts at the 2001 World Championships

Top World Athletes

Name: Jennifer Botterill (Canada), DOB: 5/1/79, Hometown: Winnipeg, Man., Notes: Plays collegiately for Harvard

ICE HOCKEY FAST FACTS 

If you'd like to play ice hockey, the first thing you need to know is how to ice skate. Start by taking lessons at a local ice rink. Without adequate skating ability, players are less able to perform the other essential skills of the sport. Since ice hockey is a team sport, you'll want to learn as much as you can about the basics of the game. You can begin by visiting the library or looking on the web for basic resources on the history and rules of ice hockey as well as instructional manuals that offer tips and drills to help improve playing skills. You can also learn by attending ice hockey pratices and games and talking to the players, coaches, referees and volunteers involved with the sport in your community.

GETTING IN SHAPE FOR ICE HOCKEY

Watching Olympic athletes often motivates people to want to try their hand at a new sport or reclaim a sport from the past. The President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports encourages participation in a wide variety of activities, including the sports of the Winter Olympics, to enhance health and fitness. Since there are risks involved with sports, before starting to ski, be sure to consult these links, which offer basic information about getting in shape and protecting yourself from cold-related stress and illness:

Getting in Shape for Winter Sports

Safety Tips: Cold Related Stress and Illness

USA HOCKEY

USA Hockey is the national governing body for the sport of hockey, including ice hockey and in-line hockey. The organization strives to provide grassroots support and leadership to its members through a comprehensive network of volunteers in each of the organization's eleven geographical districts. The following information about the game of ice hockey in this article was provided by USA Hockey. For more information, go to www.usahockey.com.

EQUIPMENT AND CLOTHING

The official playing rules specify the use of protective equipment out of concern for the orderly playing of the game, and for the safety, health and welfare of partici- pants. Player and goalkeeper equipment include:

! Stick. Sticks are made of wood or other material, such as aluminum or plastic.

! Puck. The puck is made of vulcanized rubber or other approved material and is primarily black.

! Skates. Players must wear ICE HOCKEY SKATES, with safety heel guards, as stipulated by international standards.

! Shin guards. A device contoured and moulded to protect the shin, knee, and calf.

! Gloves. The player's gloves must cover the hand and wrist, and their palm must not be removed to permit use of bare hands.

! Elbow pads. A molded pad that protects the elbow and elbow joint and provides forearm protection.

! Shoulder pads. Padding that provides extra protection for critical points of the shoulder, biceps, sternum, shoulder blade and spine.

! Helmet. Players must wear a hockey helmet that meets approved international standards with the chinstrap properly fastened.

! Visor. A clear plastic shield attached to the helmet that covers down to the lower edge of the player's nose.

! Goalkeepers equipment. Includes a goalkeeper stick, goalkeeper skates, blocking glove, catching glove, helmet with full face mask and leg guards. With the exception of skates and stick, all equipment worn by a goalkeeper must be constructed solely for the purpose of protecting head and body and must not include any garment or contrivance that would give the goalkeeper undue assistance in keeping goal.

ICE HOCKEY BASICS

Ice hockey is played on a rink, a sheet of ice which is approximately two-thirds the size of a football field, usually between 185 and 200 feet long and about 85 feet wide. The game is played in three periods of equal length — 20 minutes for each period at most levels, but often 12 or 15 minutes in youth classifications. The sport involves four basic skills: skating, passing, stickhandling, and shooting.

The Team

A team is comprised of a maximum of six players on the ice at any one time.

The Playing Zones

The ice surface is divided by blue lines into three zones: defensive, offensive, and neutral. The defensive zone is the area in which a team protects its own goal and attempts to keep the opposition from scoring. This same zone is the opposing team's offensive zone, or the area in which they are attempting to score.

The Officials

At higher levels of ice hockey competition, three officials — one referee (identified by an orange arm band) and two linesmen — are utilized. At the youth level, two officials — both of whom are referees — are common. The referee is the ultimate authority during the game and is primarily responsible for calling penalties and determining if goals have been legally scored. The primary responsibilities of the linesmen include determining violations of off-side and icing while assisting the referee in enforcing the rules of the game.

Ice Hockey Techniques

Skating — the skill that makes hockey unique.  Players at all levels of the sport continually strive to improve their skating. Without adequate skating ability, players are less able to perform the other essential skills of the sport.

Stickhandling — perhaps the most difficult of the basic skills to master. It allows a skilled player to maneuver around opponents and create better offensive opportunities.

Passing — makes hockey a true team sport and helps make the game fun. Passing gets everyone on the ice involved in the action and turns scoring into a team effort. Helping teammates experience success is what the game is all about, and passing allows the thrill of scoring to be shared.

Shooting — the end result of an offensive team play; the action that produces a goal. Many players spend most of their time practicing shooting because they believe scoring is the most fun. Players should, however, place an equal emphasis on the other basic skills of hockey, given the fact most players generally take fewer than six shots in an entire game.

The Rules

The playing rules of hockey are divided into three basic categories:

! Violations that result in a face-off

! Violations that result in a player being awarded a penalty shot

! Violations that result in a player being sent to the penalty box for a specified period of time

Face-Offs

Off-Side — An offensive player may not precede the puck across the blue line into the offensive zone.

Off-Side Pass — The puck may not be passed from a team's defensive zone to a player of the same team who is beyond the red line (applies only to Junior B and above).

Icing — A team, when both teams have an equal number of players on the ice, may not shoot the puck from behind the center red line over their opponent's goal line (except if the puck goes into the goal). In Junior B and above, the puck must first be touched by a player from the defensive team before icing is called.

Penalty Shot

A penalty shot is most commonly awarded if:

! A player, while in a scoring position, is fouled from behind and deprived of a scoring opportunity; or

! A defensive player grabs or falls on the puck when it is in the goal crease

Penalties

For the following penalties, the penalized team must play minus the number of players serving such penalties, with one exception: the penalized team can have no fewer than four players, including the goaltender, on the ice (delayed penalty):

! Minor Penalty — Two minutes. If a team is scored upon while it is shorthanded because of a minor penalty, the penalty shall terminate immediately.

! Major Penalty — Five minutes. Does not terminate early for any reason.

! Match Penalty — Five or ten minutes, depending upon the violation, and is served by a teammate. If assessed a match penalty, the offending player is ejected for the balance of the game and may not play in future games until the case has been reviewed by league administrators.

! Misconduct — Ten minutes. Served in the penalty box.

! Game Misconduct — Ejection for the balance of the game and the player or coach will serve an additional one-game suspension.

! Gross Misconduct — Ejection for the balance of the game and the player may not participate in any future games until the case has been reviewed by administrators.

Penalties: Quick List

! Slashing: Hitting or swinging at an opponent with the stick

! Holding: Impeding the progress of an opponent by using the hand, stick or any other means

! Elbowing: Checking an opponent with the elbow extended

! Hooking: Using the stick to impede the progress of an opponent

! Tripping: An action against an opponent's leg which causes the opponent to fall.

! Charging: Body checking an opponent at an excessive speed; checking or pushing from behind.

! High-sticking: Carrying the stick above normal shoulder height. If the violation results in an injury to an opponent, a major penalty should be assessed.

! Interference: Impeding the progress of an opponent who is not in possession of the puck.

! Cross-Checking: Checking an opponent with the stick across the body.

! Checking From Behind: An extremely dangerous action characterized by a player checking an opponent directly from behind.

Assist. Players are awarded assists for helping set up goals. The last two players to handle the puck prior to the scoring of the goal are usually credited for assisting the goal scorer.

Boarding. A penalty given to a player for flagrantly knocking another player into the boards.

Boards. The wooden and glass walls that surround the rink.

Body check. Using the hip or shoulder to impede the progress of a player or knock into a player.

Breakaway. A one-on-one scoring opportunity between the puck carrier and the opposing goaltender.

Butterfly pad save. A save the goalie makes by dropping to his/her knees and pointing his/her toes out, creating a "V" shape with the goal pads. This style of goaltending is effective because of the ability to cover a larger area of the crease.

Changing on the fly. Substitution of the players without stopping the play.

Charging. An infraction in which a player deliberately checks another player after taking more than two strides or steps.

Crease. A semicircle in front of the goal known as the goaltender's privileged area. No players are allowed inside the goalie's crease. Goals usually are disallowed if a member of the offensive team is in the crease.

Faceoff. The puck is dropped between two opposing players who face each other. Faceoffs occur at the beginning of each period and after any stoppage of play.

 Five hole. The space in between the goalie's legs. Many goals are scored in the five hole because of the way the goalie must shuffle to cover the entire net.

Forechecking. Pressuring the opposition when it controls the puck in the neutral zone or its defensive zone.

Hat trick. Three goals scored by one player in a single game.

Interference. Impeding the progress of an opponent who is not in possession of the puck.

Neutral zone. One of the three areas of the ice surface, the zone located between the two blue lines.

One-timer. An immediate shot off a teammate's pass. One-timers are very effective in surprising opposing goaltenders.

Poke check. A check in which a defender or goalie uses the blade of the stick to push the puck off the stick of an opponent.

Power play. A situation in which a team has more players on the ice because of a penalty (or penalties) called against the opposing team.

Pulling the goalie. In an attempt to tie the score, a team trailing by one or two goals may take its goalie off the ice and send out an extra skater. This usually occurs in the closing minutes of a game.

Short-handed. A situation in which a team is forced to play with fewer than six players because one or more have been sent to the penalty box.

Slap shot. The slap shot is the fastest of all hockey shots. Players make a sweeping motion with an accentuated backswing to shoot the puck. Wrist shot.

Wrist shot. More of a finesse shot players shoot when the puck is directly against the blade of the stick with a flick motion of the wrist.

Zamboni. A machine that cleans and resurfaces the ice. The zamboni is run before and after the game, as well as in between periods. 

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ICE HOCKEY COACHES, YOUTH HOCKEY PLAYERS AND PARENTS

The goal of the youth sports experience is to make it a rewarding and enjoyable for everyone involved. USA Hockey, Inc. (www.usahockey.com) is the national governing body for the sport of hockey, including ice hockey and in-line hockey. The organization strives to provide grassroots support and leadership to its members through a comprehensive network of volunteers in each of the organization's eleven geographical districts.

Ice Hockey Codes of Conduct

! Play for FUN!

! Work hard to improve your skills

! Be a team player — get along with your teammates

! Learn teamwork, sportsmanship and discipline

! Be on time for practices and games

! Learn the rules and play by them. Always be a good sport.

! Respect your coaches, your teammates, your opponents and the officials

! Never argue with an official's decision.

Parents' Code of Conduct  

! Do not force your children to participate in sports, but support their desire to play their chosen sport. Children are involved in organized sports for their enjoyment. Make it fun.

! Encourage your child to play by the rules. Remember, children learn best by example, so applaud the good plays of both teams.

! Do not embarrass your child by yelling at players, coaches, or officials. By showing a positive attitude toward the game and all of its participants, your child will benefit from his/her youth sports experience.

! Emphasize skill development and practices and how they benefit your young athlete. De-emphasize games and competition, particularly in the younger age groups.

! Know and study the rules of the game; support the officials on and off the ice. Any criticism of the officials only hurts the game.

! Applaud a good effort in both victory and defeat. Enforce the positive points of the game. Never yell or physically abuse your child after a game or practice. Work toward removing the physical and verbal abuse in youth sports.

! Recognize the importance of volunteer coaches. They are very important to the development of your child and the sport. Communicate with them and support them.

Coaches' Code of Conduct

! Winning is a consideration, but not the only one, nor the most important one. Care more about the child than winning the game. Remember, players are involved in hockey for fun and enjoyment.

! Be a positive role model to your players, display emotional maturity and be alert to the physical safety of players.

!! Be generous with your praise when it is deserved. Be consistent and honest; be fair and just. Do not criticize players publicly. Learn to be a more effective communicator and coach. Do not yell at players.

! Adjust to the personal needs and problems of players. Be a good listener and never verbally or physically abuse a player or official. Give all players the opportunity to improve their skills, gain confidence and develop self-esteem. Teach them the basics.

! Organize practices that are fun and challenging for your players. Familiarize yourself with the rules, techniques and strategies of hockey. Encourage all your players to be team players.

! Maintain an open line of communication with your players' parents. Explain the goals and objectives of your association.

! Be concerned with the overall development of your players. Stress good health habits and clean living.

! To play the game is great, but to love the game is greater.

WHERE TO PLAY ICE HOCKEY

USA Hockey strives to provide grassroots support and leadership to its members through a comprehensive network of volunteers in each of the organization's eleven geographical districts. For information about ice hockey teams and leagues registered with USA Hockey in your area, contact:

WEBSITES FOR INFORMATION ABOUT ICE HOCKEY

USA Hockey
International Ice Hockey Federation
National Hockey League
American Hockey League
NBC Olympics.com
MSNBC - Olympics
CBS Sportsline - Snowboarding
USA Today - Olympics
Salt Lake 2002
United States Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee

REFERENCES

Official Rules of Ice Hockey and USA Hockey 2001-02 Annual Guide

Coaching Youth Hockey, American Sports Education Program

Photo of skates courtesy of FreeFoto.com.

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