Penalty (ice hockey)

A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for an infringement of the rules. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which the player may not participate in play. Penalties are called and enforced by the referee, or in some cases the linesmen. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice, leaving them short handed as opposed to full strength. The opposing team is said to be on a power play, having one player more on the ice than the short-handed team. The short handed team is said to be "penalty killing" until the penalty expires and the penalized player returns to play. While standards vary somewhat between leagues, most leagues recognize several common degrees of penalty, as well as common infractions.

The statistic used to track penalties was traditionally called "Penalty Infraction Minutes" (PIM), although the alternate term "penalty minutes" has become common in recent years. It represents the total assessed length of penalties each player or team has accrued.[1]

The referee (top-left) signals a delayed penalty by raising an arm, and prepares to blow the whistle when a player from the team to be penalized (in white) gains control of the puck. Goaltender Jere Myllyniemi can be seen (right) rushing to the bench to send on an extra attacker.

History

The first codified rules of hockey, known as the Halifax Rules, were brought to Montreal by James Creighton, who organized the first indoor hockey game in 1875.[2] Two years later, the Montreal Gazette documented the first set of "Montreal Rules", which noted that "charging from behind, tripping, collaring, kicking or shinning the ball shall not be allowed". The only penalty outlined by these rules was that play would be stopped, and a "bully" (faceoff) would take place.[3] Revised rules in 1886 mandated that any player in violation of these rules would be given two warnings, but on a third offence would be removed from the game.[4]

It was not until 1904 that players were ruled off the ice for infractions. At that time, a referee could assess a two-, three- or five-minute penalty, depending on the severity of the foul. By 1914, all penalties were five minutes in length, reduced to three minutes two years later, and the offending player was given an additional fine. When the National Hockey League (NHL) was founded in 1917, it mandated that a team could not substitute for any player who was assessed a penalty, thus requiring them to play shorthanded for the duration. The penalty was shortened to two minutes for the 1921–22 season, while five- and ten-minute penalties were added two years later.[5]

Types of penalties

Both the NHL and the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) recognize the common penalty degrees of minor and major penalties, as well as the more severe misconduct, game misconduct, and match penalties.

Quick reference chart

Penalty Type Minor Double Minor Major Misconduct Game misconduct Match
Short-handed? Yes Yes Yes No No Yes (5 min)
Ends with goal scored? Yes Sometimes Only in overtime No No Only in overtime (5 min)
Statistical Penalty Min NHL 2 4 5 10 10 10
Statistical Penalty Min IIHF 2 4 5 10 20 25

Minor penalty

A minor penalty is the least severe type of penalty.[6] A minor penalty is two minutes in length. The offending player is sent to the penalty box and in most cases, his team will play shorthanded. If the offending player is the goaltender or a team is given a "bench minor" penalty (assessed against the team, rather than an individual player), then any skater who was on the ice at the time of the infraction may serve the penalty.[7] A team with a numerical advantage in players will go on a power play. If they score a goal during this time, the penalty will end and the offending player may return to the ice.[8] In hockey's formative years, teams were shorthanded for the entire length of a minor penalty. The NHL changed this rule following the 1955–56 season where the Montreal Canadiens frequently scored multiple goals on one power play. Most famous was a game on November 5, 1955, when Jean Béliveau scored three goals in 44 seconds, all on the same power play, in a 4–2 victory over the Boston Bruins.[5]

Coincidental minor penalties occur when an equal number of players from each team are given a minor penalty at the same time. The permission of a substitute player depends on the league and the situation at the time of the infractions. In some leagues, such as the NHL, the teams will play four-on-four for the duration of the penalties if they occurred when both teams were at even strength. However, if there is already a manpower differential, then both teams are allowed to make substitutions while the penalized players will remain in the penalty box until the first stoppage in play after their penalty expires.[9] In other competitions, such as IIHF events, coincidental penalties do not affect manpower in any situation.[10] Coincidental minor penalties are not ended when a goal is scored by either team.

In some cases, a referee can impose a double or triple minor. The infraction is counted as two or three separate minor penalties. If a team scores a power play goal during such a penalty, only the current block of two minutes being counted down is canceled; the penalty clock is then reset to the next lowest interval of two minutes (ex. a goal with a double-minor penalty clock at 3:45 is reset to 2:00). Expiration rules of double- or triple-minor penalties due to goals being scored are identical to that of regular minor penalties being served back-to-back.[11]

Major penalty

A major penalty is a stronger degree of penalty for a more severe infraction of the rules than a minor. Most infractions which incur a major penalty are more severe instances of minor penalty infractions; one exception is fighting, which always draws a major. A player who receives a major penalty will remain off the ice for five minutes of play during which his team will be short-handed. A major penalty cannot end early even if a goal is scored against the short-handed team, unless the goal is scored during an overtime period (which ends the game). If major penalties are assessed to one player on each team at the same time, they may be substituted for, and teams will not be reduced by one player on the ice. The penalized players will remain in the penalty box until the first stoppage of play following the end of the penalties. This commonly occurs with majors for fighting.

Under IIHF rules, every major penalty carries an automatic game misconduct penalty; in other competitions, earning three major penalties in a game results in a game misconduct penalty, though a number of infractions that result in a major penalty automatically impose a game misconduct as well.

Infractions that often call for a major penalty include spearing, fighting, butt-ending, charging, and boarding.

Misconduct penalty

A player who receives a misconduct penalty will remain off the ice for ten minutes. The player may be substituted for on the ice and may return to the ice at the first stoppage in play following the expiration of the penalty (unless other penalties were assessed); however, in practice, misconduct penalties are normally assessed along with two minute minor penalties (resulting in a penalty combination colloquially called a "two-and-ten") and another player will serve this penalty first. In the instances where a misconduct penalty is called, it is usually to allow tempers to cool and are sometimes also awarded in conjunction with fighting majors, giving the offending player(s) the opportunity to calm down as they sit out their 10 minutes. If an additional penalty is incurred with a misconduct penalty, the times run consecutively - one right after the other. For example, if a player receives a 2-minute minor plus a misconduct for boarding, they would have someone else serve the 2 minute minor. At the expiration of the minor penalty (either goal scored or time elapsed) the player serving the minor would be allowed out of the penalty bench and the 10-minute misconduct time would begin. This is according to USA Hockey Rule 401(a).

Game misconduct penalty

A player (whether a skater, goaltender or any member of any team's coaching staff) who receives a game misconduct penalty is ejected, and is sent to the team's dressing room. The player may be immediately substituted for on the ice; however, in practice, game misconduct penalties are normally assessed along with five-minute major penalties (so the infraction is termed a "five-minute game misconduct") and another player will serve this penalty first. Regardless of the time of the penalty, the player is charged with ten penalty minutes (twenty in the IIHF rules) for statistical purposes. This rule also applies to match penalties (see below).

In most leagues, the referee has the discretion to call a game misconduct on a player charged with boarding due to the likelihood of injury to the boarded player. However, in the NHL, if a boarded player suffers a head or facial injury (a concussion risk), the offending player receives an automatic game misconduct.

Any player who is dismissed twice for stick infractions, boarding or checking from behind, or dismissed three times for any reason, in a single NHL regular season incurs an automatic one-match ban, and further discipline is possible for subsequent ejections. For each subsequent game misconduct penalty, the automatic suspension shall be increased by one game. Salary lost as a result of a ban is usually donated to a league-supported charity or to a program to assist retired players.

Examples of a game misconduct penalty include getting out of the penalty box before the penalty time is served, or trying to join or attempt to break up a fight (third man in).

Match penalty

A player who receives a match penalty is ejected. A match penalty is imposed for deliberately injuring another player as well as attempting to injure another player. Many other penalties automatically become match penalties if injuries actually occur: under NHL rules, butt-ending, goalies using blocking glove to the face of another player, head-butting, punching an unsuspecting player, spearing, and tape on hands during altercation[12] must be called as a match penalty if injuries occur; under IIHF rules, kneeing[13] and checking to the head or neck area[14] must be called as a match penalty if injuries occur.

The team of the offending player must choose a substitute player to place in the box from any of the eligible players, excluding the goaltender (if he is not the one being penalized). The substitute serves a five-minute penalty similar to a major penalty (except in overtime, goals scored against the penalized team do not end the penalty early). If the goaltender receives a match penalty, another player serves the time so that the team may immediately insert a backup. In most cases, offending players are suspended from the next game their team plays, and often face hearings with the possibility of a lengthier ban. In the NHL, a match penalty and a game misconduct are virtually identical in application. However, a match penalty carries a larger fine, and the offending player is suspended indefinitely until the Commissioner rules on the issue.[15]

In NCAA hockey, a similar penalty called a game disqualification results in automatic suspension for the number of games equal to the number of game disqualification penalties the player has been assessed in that season.

For statistical purposes, match penalty is counted as ten minutes in NHL and as twenty-five minutes under the IIHF rules.

Penalty shot

A penalty shot is a special case of penalty for cases in which a scoring opportunity was lost as a result of an infraction (like being tripped or hooked while on a breakaway; or a player - other than the goaltender - covers the puck with their hand inside the crease). The player who was deprived of the opportunity (in cases the infraction was against him, for example, on breakaways), or one chosen by the team (in cases where the infraction is not against a specific player), is allowed an unchallenged opportunity to score on the opposing goaltender as compensation. If the infraction occurred when the penalized team has pulled their goalie and the infraction occurs during a breakaway, a goal is immediately awarded to the other team rather than a penalty shot.[16] Regardless of whether the penalty shot is successful, the original penalty is not assessed unless the original penalty would have been called as either a double-minor penalty, a major penalty, a match penalty, or a misconduct penalty: in the case of a double-minor penalty only two minutes of penalty time is served (the penalty shot replacing the first part of the double-minor); the major, match, or misconduct penalty that would have been called is served in its entirety.[17]

Apart from their use as a penalty, penalty shots also form the shootout that is used to resolve ties in many leagues and tournaments.

Gross misconduct penalty

Similar to a game misconduct in severity, gross misconduct penalties have been eliminated from the NHL rulebook. It was imposed for an action of extreme unsportsmanlike conduct, such as abuse of officials or spectators, and could be assessed to any team official in addition to a player. Infractions which garnered a gross misconduct now earn a game misconduct. The penalty had last been assessed in 2006 on Atlanta Thrashers coach Bob Hartley due to post-game comments made regarding referee Mick McGeough's blown call during a game versus Edmonton. The Phoenix Coyotes' Shane Doan was the last player to be given a gross misconduct penalty in 2005 for alleged ethnic slurs directed at French-Canadian referees (later investigated and subsequently cleared by the NHL).

However, this penalty is still in effect in Canadian hockey. “A Gross Misconduct penalty shall be assessed [to] any player or team official who conducts herself in such a manner as to make a travesty of the game.”[18]

Enforcement of penalties

The referee(s) make most penalty calls. Linesmen generally may call only certain obvious technical infractions such as "too many players on the ice". The official will initially put an arm in the air to signal a penalty; the official will stop play only once the offending team has control of the puck, or play is stopped by normal means. A delayed penalty is one in which the penalty is called but play is not yet stopped because the non-offending team retains the puck. The goaltender of the non-offending team will often go to the players' bench upon seeing the arm signal to allow an extra attacker on the ice until the play is stopped. Once the offending team touches the puck and the play is stopped, the referee will signal the specific infraction.

In the NHL, if the non-offending team scores a goal prior to play being stopped on a delayed minor penalty call, the penalty is waived. If the non-offending team scores on a delayed double-minor penalty, only the first two-minute block is waived off, and the offending player must still serve the second time block. These rules used to be in college hockey as well, until the 2010-2011 season, when it was changed so that the penalty would still be imposed even if a goal was scored. Major penalties and match penalties are enforced in the usual manner, in both college hockey and the NHL, whether or not a goal is scored.[19]

The offending player(s) are sent to the penalty box where they must remain until the penalty has expired. Typically a team will not be allowed to replace the penalized player on the ice; the player will return directly to the ice once the penalty has expired. This creates a power play during which the penalized team will have one player fewer than their opponent and is said to be "short-handed". If two players on a team are in the penalty box at the same time, their team will be in a "five on three" situation (as is customary, the goalies are not counted in this expression). Additional players may be penalized, but a team will never play with fewer than three skaters on the ice. Additional penalties will be delayed until one of the earlier penalties has expired.

In leagues which play with a three-on-three overtime, an additional skater to the ice is added, up to two additional skaters. If the first penalty expires without a goal being scored, the teams normally play five-on-four until the next stoppage of play when the teams will revert to four-on-three. Similarly, in three-on-three overtime, the teams will play four-on-four until the next stoppage of play, when the teams revert to three-on-three.

While goaltenders can be assessed penalties, a goaltender cannot go to the penalty box and the penalty must be instead served by another player from their team who was on the ice at the time of the infraction (the PIM will be charged to the goaltender). If the goaltender receives either (a) three major penalties (NHL Rule 28.2), (b) one game misconduct penalty (NHL Rule 28.4), or (c) one match penalty (NHL Rule 28.5) however, he or she is ejected for the remainder of the game and must be substituted.

While a team is short-handed, they are permitted to ice the puck as they wish, without having the icing infraction called against them. This allows short-handed teams to relieve pressure more easily when defending with one less skater than their opponents. This exemption does not apply to teams whose opponents have pulled their goaltender for an extra attacker (unless the defending team is killing a penalty at the same time).

Stacked penalties

When two players on one team are in the penalty box at the same time, it becomes a five-on-three (or two-man advantage) situation. When a third player of the same team gets a penalty before either of the other two have expired, it remains five-on-three and it becomes a stacked penalties situation. This means that the third penalty will start when one of the others expire, whether the time expires or the opposing team scores on the powerplay. This is because there can be no fewer than three attackers for each team on the ice at one time. This also means that the player whose penalty expires first out of the three must wait for a stoppage in play, or the expiration of the second penalty, before leaving the penalty box so that it is appropriately 5 on 3, 5 on 4, and 5 on 5 in succession for each respective situation. In leagues using four-on-four or three-on-three overtime, if a team is penalized with only three skaters in play, the team keeps three skaters on the ice. Instead, the other team is allowed to play an extra skater for the duration, up to a full strength of five; stacked penalties are still enforced if a penalty occurs in a five-on-three situation.[20]

List of infractions

In the NHL, infractions that result in penalties include:

Abuse of officials 
Arguing with, insulting, using obscene gestures or language directed at or in reference to, or deliberately making violent contact with any on or off-ice official. This generally is issued in addition to other penalties or as a bench penalty against a coach or off-ice player, and is grounds for ejection under a game misconduct or match penalty in most leagues including the NHL.
Aggressor penalty 
Assessed to a player who engages in a fight with an unwilling combatant. This is independent of the instigator penalty, and both are usually not assessed to the same player at one time (in that case the player's penalty for fighting is usually escalated to deliberate injury of opponents, which carries a match penalty).
Attempt to injure
Deliberately trying to harm an opponent (successfully or not). This type of infraction carries an automatic match penalty.
Biting
Carries a major penalty (5:00).
Boarding
Pushing an opponent violently into the boards while the player is facing the boards.
Butt-ending (or Stabbing)
Jabbing an opponent with the end of the shaft of the stick. It carries an automatic major penalty and game misconduct.
Broken stick
Engaging in play while holding a broken stick.
Charging
Taking more than three strides or jumping before hitting an opponent.
Checking from behind
Hitting an opponent from behind is a penalty. It carries an automatic minor penalty and misconduct, or a major penalty and game misconduct if it results in injury. See checking. This is generally allowed in the NHL unless it's covered by another penalty such as boarding or illegal check to the head.
Clipping
Delivering a check below the knees of an opponent. If injury results, a major penalty and a game misconduct will result.
Cross-checking
Hitting an opponent with the stick when it is held with two hands and no part of the stick is on the ice.
Delay of game
Stalling the game (for example, shooting the puck out of play from the defensive zone, holding the puck in the hand, refusing to send players out for a faceoff, or even repeated deliberate offsides). Starting in the