Know the Rules of Ice Hockey

DCYHA - Davis County Youth Hockey Association

Know the Rules

It takes a while to grasp the nuances of a fast-paced sport like ice hockey. And going into the second season with the new Standards of Play, minor changes in the rules, and continuous training on safety and parent support DCYHA created this page to give hockey players, parents, and fans a place to learn some of the trickier rules.

Sitting in the stands one can hear numerous comments like "Why didn't the ref call that?" "What was that signal?" and "Let them play ref." Did you know that three of our DCYHA players and one of our coaches all wear the stripes and are certified by USA Hockey to work sanctioned games? To shed a light on some of the more challenging situations we have asked each of them to provide a quick explanation of their favorite rules.

Brian Acord (Coach) - Under the new Standards of Play implemented at the beginning of the 2006 season, the player's use of the stick has been significantly changed over previous interpretations. Now USA Hockey clearly states that "The use of the stick will be limited to only playing the puck." On the surface this sounds fairly simple but consider the following clarifications.

  • A player cannot use his/her stick against an opponent’s body (puck carrier or non-puck carrier) to gain a positional advantage.
  • A player cannot use his/her stick on the legs or feet of an opponent in a manner that would cause a loss of balance or for them to trip or fall.

Basically, any contact with the stick and the hands, upper stick, arms, or body of an opponent is considered to be hooking, slashing, tripping, or interference. Simply put, a players stick can only make contact with the puck and lower portion of the opponent's stick. As this is a new change in the interpretation and enforcement of old rules, many coaches, players, parents, and fans are not as aware of these new standards of play as they should be.

Bremen Acord (Bantam Player) - Injuries. Unless a player is severely injured and obviously needs immediate attention, the play does not stop immediately for an injured player. USA Hockey states that the play must continue until the injured player's team gains control of the puck (much like a delayed penalty). As much as I would like to stop the game immediately and help the injured player, unless the injury is obvious the referee must let the play continue. When the whistle is blown, the referee is prevented from providing immediate aid as that is the job of the injured player's coach.

Bronson Kunzler (Bantam Player) - There are many calls that are up to the judgment of the official. A ref in proper position should have the best angle to watch the play and may decide not to make a call based on positioning or other circumstances around the play. Before becoming an official, I had no idea how much emphasis there was placed on where the officials should be. I just thought they could go where they wanted to go. But, in addition to the rule book, USA Hockey has three manuals covering the job of on-ice officials and many of the pages provide details on where the official should be in each situation and what they should be looking for. Most officials that I have worked with do a good job of making sure they are in the right place at the right time. Officials also work together. In a 2-man system like those used at most youth hockey games, the front official is responsible for watching the play around the puck and the back official is supposed to watch away from the play. If the official responsible for watching play near the puck does not call a penalty, I assume that they were in a better position to make the call than I was and will usually not make their call for them unless it was a very obvious situation from my point of view. I often hear comments from coaches about "Why didn't you call that?" and the reality is that it was not my assignment and that the other official was in a better position than both me and the upset coach to see the play and make the right call. I have been very surprised with the number of times that I saw a play very clearly because I was in the right position but the view of the other official, the coach, and the fans in the stand could not have had as good of a view of the play than from where I was. I guess that's why USA Hockey lets the referees have skates and places a strong emphasis on where the officials should be during the game.

P.J. Tanner (Bantam Player) - I have played hockey for a long time as center and have taken faceoffs in just about every location on the ice. But I never really thought much about it other than to simply skate to where the ref was going to drop a puck. As I reviewed the official USA Hockey materials I realized a few interesting things about faceoff locations. Basically, faceoffs can be held at any of the 9 face-off dots on the ice and anywhere along a continuous line from the faceoff dot in one end of the ice to the same-side faceoff dot in the other end of the ice. There are hundreds of reasons why faceoffs change but two of the more commonly confused reasons are for offsides and for when a puck is shot or deflected out of the rink into the crowd (or protective netting).

Offsides calls that are caused by a player carrying a puck into the offensive zone are held at the nearest faceoff circle. But, if the offsides was created from a pass, a dump, or a shot into the offensive zone the faceoff takes place at the location nearest to the invisible line connecting the four side face-off dots. These faceoffs do not need to be conducted on a normal faceoff dot. Also, in the event that the offsides was considered to be intentional offsides (i.e. the player with the puck knew that his/her team was offsides and shot it in anyway to avoid pressure from the other team) the faceoff is taken all the way to the team's defensive zone faceoff dot as if it were an icing call on that team.

For pucks that are shot or deflected out of the rink, the faceoff is held where the puck was last played (along the invisible line). If, however, the team that shot the puck was in their attacking zone the faceoff is taken outside the zone to the nearest neutral zone faceoff dot unless the puck was deflected or touched by a member of the defensive team. If an attacking player takes a shot that hits the top of the crossbar and is deflected out of play, it was not touched by a member of the defending team and so the faceoff goes outside the zone.

Previously Reviewed Rules

The Penalty Shot - USA Hockey Rule 406 Your player has the puck and is breaking down the ice. It appears that he has a clear shot at the goalie but is penalized from behind. The referee’s arm shoots up signifying a delayed penalty. Will it be a penalty or a penalty shot? How can we tell? This edition of “Ask a Ref” looks more closely at the criteria that should be used in awarding a penalty shot.

This one is relatively straightforward and simple. The Basic Officials Manual outlines the five key criteria used in distinguishing between a penalty and awarding a penalty shot. In order to be awarded a penalty shot, all five of the following criteria must be met:

  1. The player must be in possession and control of the puck. The key word here is control. For example, a player who shoots the puck slightly ahead in a controlled manner in order to skate faster is still considered in possession and control of the puck whereas a player who is trying to dig the puck out from between his skates while he is moving may not be considered to have enough control.
  2. The player must be beyond his/her defending blueline.
  3. There is no opponent present between the player and the opposing goalkeeper. (Note, the opposing defensemen does not have to be directly in the player’s path but simply between the player and the opposing goalkeeper.)
  4. The player must be fouled directly from behind. an opponent who has an angle on the breakaway player and commits the foul from the side should be penalized, but no penalty shot shall be awarded.
  5. The player must have been deprived of a reasonable scoring opportunity. (Note, a player who still has a reasonable scoring opportunity, even though fouled from behind, should not be awarded a penalty shot.)

Like most rules, these criteria are somewhat subjective and while USA Hockey does provide additional guidance on defining the terms “possession,” “control,” and from “behind,” (meaning outside of a reasonable peripheral view), the term “reasonable scoring opportunity” is left to the official’s discretion. By the way, you can download a complete version of the USA Hockey Rule book and the USA Hockey Rules and Casebook (much more detailed “what if scenarios”) from the USA Hockey Website.

EXTRA Credit

Did you know that a team is allowed to change goalies just for a penalty shot?

Did you know that in cases where the infraction would normally have resulted in a minor penalty, the coach of the non-penalized team can opt to have the penalized player serve a 2-minute penalty instead of taking a penalty shot?

You Make the Call

During a penalty shot attempt, the puck is shot over the goal, rebounds off the glass, hits the goalkeeper in the back and enters the goal. Should the goal be allowed? (Answer will be posted in the next DCYHA newsletter. Click here to subscribe.)

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