Ice Hockey is team game played on an ice surface. It is an Olympic discipline. This game is often referred to as “Hockey” in some countries including Canada and the USA. Apart from these two countries, Ice Hockey is also popular in European countries such as Sweden, Russia, Slovakia, Finland, and the Czech Republic. It is played in countries with natural snow cover. Modern Ice Hockey originated in Canada. It is the national sport of Canada.
Like field Hockey, the object of the game is to score goal by shooting a puck inside the opponent’s goal. A puck is a flat and hard disk made from hard rubber. The puck is shot at tremendous speed even exceeding 150 kilometers per hour. The puck size has been standardized. The hockey sticks are made from wood or composite materials. The goal tenders stick is slightly different from the other players.
There are various Ice Hockey techniques which include snap shot, the slap shot, the back hand, wrist shot etc. The players are penalized if they resort to tactics such as slashing, interference, and elbowing. In the women’s version of the game, body contacts are not allowed. It is a fast-paced game which can be quite dangerous as well. That is why Ice Hockey players use specialized equipment to play the game. Ice hockey players wear protective gears to avoid injuries. The protective gears of the players include Helmets with visor, shoulder pads, elbow pads, knee pads, throat protector, chest protector, gloves, shin pads, jock strap and gloves. The goaltender wears some extra protective gear including leg pads, reinforced skates, specially designed gloves, shield, and helmet with mask. The players use skates to move through the iced surface. The duration of the game is 3 periods of 20 minutes each. The playing surface is called as rink, rectangular in size and is equally divided into two halves by a red line. The off side rule in Ice Hockey is similar to that of Soccer and Field Hockey. Ice Hockey is a 6 a side game. A typical Ice Hockey team has a goal keeper, two defenders, one center, and two wings.
Ice Hockey was introduced in the 1920 Olympic Games. Canada has been the dominating team in the initial years of the competition. It became a part of the Winter Olympic Games from 1956 onwards. The erstwhile Soviet Union was the dominant force in this sport for a long. They continued their dominance till the disintegration of the Soviet Empire. For many years, the professional Ice Hockey players were not allowed to participate in the Olympics. But now, they are allowed. This enhances the quality of competition. Apart from the Olympics, two other prestigious Ice Hockey tournaments are Ice Hockey World Championships and the Stanley Cup.
