Icing is called in a hockey game when a player has the puck and fires it from his half of the ice, past the opposing goal line and a member of the opposing team touches the puck before a member of his team. When a team gets called for icing, the referee blows his whistle and play is stopped. The referee brings the puck all the way into the offending team's defensive zone and the puck is dropped in one of the two face-off circles.
Relieving Pressure
When your opponent is in your defensive end and is peppering your goalie with shots, you are desperate to gain control of the puck and get it out of your zone. Ideally, you will block a shot or steal a pass and carry it out of your zone and create an offensive play of your own. However, if you gain possession of the puck and fire it down the ice so it passes the goal line and your opponent touches, you gain a bit of relief because the referee blows his whistle and you get a brief respite before the ensuing face-off.
Olympic Icing
When teams play Olympic or international hockey, there is a bit of a difference in the icing rule. If you fire the puck from your half of the ice and the puck goes past the goal line, it is icing. Your opponent does not have to skate back and touch the puck. The whistle is blown as soon as the puck crosses the back line and the face-off is brought back to your defensive zone.
Shorthanded Icing
When your team is shorthanded because of a penalty call, the rules change. While your team is attempting to kill off that penalty, you are allowed to ice the puck. This is also true in international hockey. The referee will not blow the whistle when the puck is iced while you are shorthanded. Instead, your opponent must retrieve the puck and resume their attack from their own defensive zone.
Taking Advantage
When your opponent ices the puck with frequency because you are controlling the play, that often means that you have the better team. When you have face-offs in your offensive zone, you can create a set play that will usually set up a very strong shot on goal. The ability to win face-offs after icing calls can give your team a big edge on the scoreboard because many of these scoring opportunities can result in goals.
Member Comments