Friday, October 16, 2009

Beginners Guide To Playing Hockey

By Kenneth Maluda

Primarily celebrated in regions that are known for their cold weather (Canada, the United States, Russia, Norway, Sweden, and Scandinavia, for instance) hockey is a sport which can take a lot out of a player, physically. The game consists of 22 players that are rotated in at 6 players at a time. Three twenty minute periods comprise the game, and a twenty minute overtime period as well, until there is a goal scored. Tied games stopped being allowed under NHL rules, so this is a way to end a game if it is tied at the last period.

Hockey has modified itself over the time since its conception with the establishment of strict regulations - nothing like it was back in Europe where the referee was in the audience instead of on the field. These days there are actually two referees, and each of them make their home on the ice next to the players, coffering with each other and with the league officials watching on the sidelines is not unheard of. The league behavior is also different because of the regulations, and the increased organization led to the addition of a penalty box. In severe cases, this time out can last all game.

A change of behavior has caused an entirely different type of league with stricter regulations and that has caused a penalty box to be added to the game. This means that a player who breaks a league-mandated rule will have to sit out the rest of the period or the game, depending upon what the referee decides.

The fights between the players on the ice today is amazing to watch, as even the referees can get caught sometimes in the brawls that happen between rival and fellow players. This is an understandable outcome, as the fist fights that erupt from these fights on the ice can easily turn into assault with a weapon if the players start using their sticks or helmets. Even the protective glass that is located rink side has been known to break because of the hockey players' intensive fighting style.

This is the reality of hockey in today's world, which can result in serious injuries, which are mostly cuts and bruises from the constant fist fighting on the ice. The fights can result from calls the players feel are unfair and fall to the other team or even a rival player taunting them in some way which can cause them to be angry and combative.

Locker rooms are usually the place that players go - or are sent to - to calm down and so they will not get too worked up in a fight. It isn't surprising, given the immense amount of energy involved in hockey that tempers flare so easily. Fighting may be natural, but including the referee in the fighting is something else entirely.

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