The Rules of Hockey by Michael Burns

     Here in Sparta, we favor sports such as football and basketball, however there is not a lot of love for hockey. This is mainly because not many people know how to skate and that we don't have many local ice rinks. Also, many may argue that the puck is too small to see and that the rules of the game are hard to understand. Here is everything you need to know about hockey...

     Lets start off with the fact that the ice itself is 200 feet long and is broken up into three zones. On one end of the ice, you have the of offensive zone, this zone is where the opposing team's net is located for your team to score on. On the other end of the ice is the defensive zone, this is where your net is and where the opposing team will try to score on you. Then there is neutral zone in the middle of the ice, separating the offensive and defensive zones.

     In addition, there are six positions to play in hockey. First is the center, these players play an offensive game at the center of the ice and take almost all of the face-offs. Along with the center are the wingers, these players also play and offensive game with the centers but instead play on the left and right side of the ice. Next is the defense-man, arguably the hardest position to play in hockey. These players always need to keep up against the opposing teams players and prevent them from getting a shot on goal. All teams have at least six of them with three of them being designated to the right side, and three of them to the left. Then there is the goalie, all teams must carry two of them, a starter and a backup, these players need to be super flexible in order to stretch their bodies across the ice and make the save. Goalies are players who make sure the puck stays out of the net.
     Then there are penalties, some common ones are high sticking, rouging, fighting, tripping, and boarding. Even goalies can take penalties by tripping players or controlling the puck outside of their designated area. Even coaches can take a penalty by deploying too many men on the ice. These are the most common and easiest ways for your team to take a penalty. When a team takes a penalty, that team goes on a penalty kill meaning they have four players on the ice whereas the opposing team is on the power play meaning they have five players. The amount of time a team is on a power play/penalty kill varies between two-five minutes depending on the severity of the penalty.
     Then there are very important rules that result in a stoppage of play. A very important rule to understand is icing. Icing is when a player shoots the puck from behind the center red line, across the opposing team's goal line, and the puck remains untouched. This results in a stoppage in play and face off. Another rule is an offside, this occurs when a player enters the zone before the puck. Those two rules are very important to know when watching or playing hockey because they happen so frequently.
     Although hockey does not get the attention that it deserves, I strongly advise you watch a game or even play it one time. Now that you understand the rules, there is now no excuse to not enjoy the game of hockey.