Basic Characteristics and Rules of Ice Hockey
Ice hockey is one of the fastest team sports played on an ice rink. It is specific in a high number of unusual activities. Such activities include skating, controlling the puck with a hockey stick or very frequent physical contact with the opponent. It mainly develops fastness, strength, endurance, facility, team cooperation and self-control. Ice hockey is a game of fixed organized team and it is thus necessary for individual players to conform to the team. Predominant features of ice hockey are fastness, roughness and technique.
The aim of the game is for skating players to score the puck controlled with the hockey stick into the opponent’s goal. The winner of the match is the team who scored more goals (Pavliš, 2000). In the match, there are two opposing teams – each is formed of six players on the ice one of whom is the goalkeeper. Even though the maximum of players on the ice is six, the whole team can comprise up to 22 hockey players who can change in a more or less arbitrary way. This ensures that the speed of the game is still the same as the players who can change are able to recover power for another time period on the ice. The six players on the ice are composed of the goalkeeper, three forwards and two backs. Forwards are divided into left wing, center forward and right wing. Similarly, backs are divided into right and left backs. The match lasts for 60 minutes and is composed of three periods each lasting 20 minutes. Between the periods, there are two 15-minute intermissions for ice grooming. The teams change sides after each period. The whole game is supervised by the referee who focuses most importantly on regularity of the game. He is assisted by two linesmen and if needed, he can also consult the video goal judge.
Czech hockey observes the rules of IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation).
Fig. 11 Dimensions of the playground (http://www.bringthenhltohamilton.com/Louis_Pelissier.html)
History and Development of Ice Hockey
There is a number of viewpoints and opinions on where the game actually originated and who created it. The roots of ice hockey are to be looked for deep in the past. In Athens National Museum, there is a painting of boys playing a game with curved sticks and a ball. This game was called Keratizein by ancient Greeks. All is depicted on an embossment dated approximately 480 AD. At that time, it was field hockey, i.e. without skates and most probably without any fast movements and rough clashes. It was played for amusement not to compete between two opponents. Paintings by Flemish painters from the 16th Century depict a man with a hockey stick on ice. Sliding on ice must have definitely played a certain role during the game. Similar proofs are to be found at other places in Europe: Russia, Germany, Scotland and England. First references about a European game similar to hockey come from 1600. This game was called “hurley” and it was played prevailingly in Ireland, Scotland and England. The game resembled present golf and hockey mixed together. Thanks to Irish immigrants, this game spread to Nova Scotia in Canada around 1770. Subsequently, it spread from Nova Scotia to Boston in 1860 which are the first references about the game in the USA. Canada plays an important part among the countries where hockey or some similar game was played. According to historians, Halifax became the first place where hockey started to be played. Therefore, Halifax in Canada is nowadays considered the birthplace of hockey. Current hockey as we know it today developed in North America in the course of many years. (historie.hokej.cz).
Fig. 12 Historical team (http://historie.hokej.cz/index.php?view=clanek&lng=cz&id=242&menu_id=242&open_id=0)
Fig. 13 Goal attack (http://historie.hokej.cz/index.php?view=clanek&lng=cz&id=242&menu_id=242&open_id=0)
OFFENSIVE GAME ACTIVITIES OF AN INDIVIDUAL
According to Bukač (2005), skating creates presuppositions for rational movement on ice but it is only in combination with working with the hockey stick and the puck that makes a real hockey player. The complex of activities which are performed by a player and which aim at winning the puck or preventing the opponent from scoring a goal are called game activities of an individual. Apart from skating, game activities of an individual become the main contents of training until the fourth or fifth grade at the elementary school. Game activities of an individual can be divided according to whether a player or his team mates are in possession of the puck (in the offensive zone) or whether they are covering in defense zone (the opponent is in the possession of the puck). To perform the majority of game activities of an individual, a player uses the hockey stick (passing, shooting but also stealing the puck etc.). Offensive activities of an individual include:
Clearing of a player with the puck – the substance of clearing with the puck is not to lose it in a direct contact with the opponent. By beating the opponent, the player gains more convenient position for further activities: passing, shooting or approaching the opponent’s cage. Clearing with the puck creates possibilities of outnumbering (the advantage of having more attacking players in a specific game situation) and thus of scoring a goal. Therefore it is one of the fundamental skills which must be mastered by every player. Clearing with the puck consists of two basic stages:
- Controlling the puck which can further be divided into:
a) controlling by short or long dribbling
b) controlling by dragging or pushing the puck
- Circumventing the opponent which can be done by:
a) deke
b) bypassing or interjecting
When clearing with the puck, the player beats the opponent through the velocity of skating or maneuvering, i.e. a sudden change in direction, stopping or starting. The player must use these options in a creative way; surprise is a very important aspect. This is what characterizes an outstanding hockey player. During such activities, the player does not watch the puck; he should watch the opponent or the overall situation in the game respectively. The player controls the puck using peripheral vision (i.e. he sees the puck only indirectly because it is in the scope of vision of his eyes).
Passing is a game activity of an individual which means intentionally handing the puck over to a team mate. It is the basis of most game combinations and teamwork. It consists of two basic parts which are closely interrelated – passing (moving the puck) and handling (receiving the puck). Passing and handling can be done both backhand and forehand, sliding on ice or in the air; the puck can be handled with the stick, hand or skate.
Shooting is the climax of the majority of attacks. The effectiveness of shooting affects the number of scored goals and the result of the match. Therefore it is of the highest importance in hockey today. Shooting can be divided into:
- Forehand shooting
a) sweep
b) snap sweep
c) short snap
d) slap
- Backhand shooting
a) sweep
b) snap
DEFENSIVE GAME ACTIVITIES OF AN INDIVIDUAL
According to Perič (2002), a player uses defensive activities of an individual in a situation when his team does not control the puck. They focus on two basic defense areas which are closely interrelated and which supplement each other.
Stealing the puck from the opponent or winning control of the puck respectively.
Preventing the opponent from further activity.
Some coaches claim that only backs should be concerned with defense, the forwards should score goals not defend. Nowadays, it is necessary that all players are involved in defensive tasks therefore it is important to train basic defensive skills at an early age of a player. This activity requires personal bravery, decision-making, intrepidness and presupposition resistance in rough fights or when hit by the puck. For a team, a good back is as important and rare as a good forward. Therefore both of them must be trained in defensive activities. In training, the rule should be that a player attacks in one cycle and guards in the next one and vice versa. An important aspect is to recognize the play of backs. In practice, for example in a one-on-one situation, it often happens that coaches recognize only the attacking player and they somehow expect the back to do his job properly. On the contrary, it is necessary to pay attention to backs in respect of explanations and encouragement.
Bukač (2005) claims that while training defense activities (mainly personal fights and shot
blocking), the coach should pay attention to the security of the players. It is not good to let players of significantly different weights practice game roughness or block hard shots. The aim is not to get injured but to master the activity. Description of defensive activities of an individual should be started by commenting on covering a player with the puck. This activity consists of two parts or rather of two types of defensive acts:
Covering with the stick – called stealing the puck
Covering with the body – called personal fights
However, the two activities are trained at different ages (personal fights only around the age of 10). Like the activities above, defensive activity of an individual consists of the following parts:
Stealing the puck is the basic defensive activity of an individual. Training starts together with clearing of a player with the puck against whom it is mainly used in the game.
In the majority of the situations, stealing is done by the stick:
a) by poking the puck out
b) by raising the stick
c) by hitting the stick (or the puck)
All of the methods employ the same beginning when the back gets into contact with the opponent. The position of the players can be either facing each other (the attacking payer goes forwards, the back goes backwards in the same direction as the attacking player) or going side by side (both players go forwards mostly next to each other or the back goes slightly more to the rear). Getting into contact means that the defense player has a possibility to attack the opponent with his body or stick.
Personal fight – the rules of ice hockey are specific in allowing personal fights among the players. Players are mostly involved in personal fights by the boards but fights can appear also on the open ice. The target is usually players with the puck but they can also be players without it. The roughness of the fights is often at the risk of injuries. A good technique of personal fights lowers the danger of being injured and increases the probability of success. Fights are not trained with small children; children are trained for stealing the puck with the stick. In fighting, the player can be in facing or side-by-side position. Like when stealing the puck, in the facing position, the defense player goes backwards in the direction of the opponent’s movement; when side by side, the defense player goes forward next to the attacking player. The fight has got three stages:
a) approaching the player
b) getting into contact
c) winning the puck
Shot blocking is one of the important parts of defense. In top professional hockey, the puck flies so quickly that the goalkeeper is often not able to react to the shot. Therefore it is important that the players who are guarding (both forwards and backs) are able to block the puck thus increasing the probability that the opponent will not score a goal. This activity gets even more important when playing shorthanded. Blocking shots while in standing position is the easiest way. The player stands with his legs close to each other, the blade of the stick is usually in front of the feet. The advantage of this position is the possibility of a quick reaction to a change in situation (fake shot etc.), a disadvantage is only a little space for blocking the shot.
Another way is to block shots while kneeling on one or both knees. At the moment of shooting, the player kneels down, legs are close to each other and the stick is held in one hand. The free hand is stretched towards the ice; the other hand with the stick is turned to the side. This method is used in one-on-one situations when the attacker attempts to shoot around the back who kneels down while going backwards. A greater distance (3-4m) between the back and the forward is needed.
While shooting on ice or above the ice, defense players often block the shot by sliding. When performing this, the player lies down on the side, his legs are directed towards the puck, his head away from the puck; the stick is held in one hand. Legs should be close to each other and the free hand should be placed on the legs. This method of blocking is efficient but it requires precise performance and most importantly a very good estimation. If the player slides too soon, the attacker will not shoot but clears or passes which creates a more dangerous situation that the original shooting.
COMBINATIONS IN THE GAME
Like activities of an individual, game combinations can be divided into main activities (based on the team’s control of the puck):
Offensive game combinations based on the principle of:
a) pass and go
b) criss-crossing
c) screening
Offensive game combinations based on the principle of:
a) take-over
b) safeguarding
c) doubling
d) backing off
Keywords:
Ice hockey, IIHF, 60 min (3x20), game activities of an individual, clearing with the puck, controlling the puck, passing, shooting, stealing the puck, shot blocking, combination, pass and go, criss-crossing, back passes, screening, defensive game combinations based on the principle of taking over, safeguarding, doubling, backing off.
References:
ZAPLETAL, Jiří. Činnost trenéra ledního hokeje v rámci 1. a 2. ligy. MU Brno, 2010. Diplomová práce. FSpS. Vedoucí práce Jiří Nykodým.
TRUHLÁŘ, Václav. Rozvoj rychlostních schopností dětí staršího školního věku v ledním hokeji. MU Brno, 2010. Bakalářská práce. FSpS. Vedoucí práce Eduard Hrazdíra.