How to Play Hockey

How to Play Hockey

Ice Hockey is believed to have begun during the Middle Ages, when northern

Europeans played games on makeshift ice skates. The French explorers who watched the

Indians, who would also play this stick and ball game, called it "hoquet".

Before beginning to play hockey you must know the rules of the game. A hockey

team consists of a goal tender, two defenders, and three forwards ( a center and two

wings ). Hockey is played in three twenty-minute periods. The team that hits the most

pucks into the opponent's goal wins. The game is played in an ice-covered rink shaped

like a rectangle. Wooden walls about three or four feet high surround the rink. At

each end is a cage, or goal which the players try to hit the puck into. They hit the pucks with wooden or graphite sticks with curved ends. The puck is a disc-like object made of black rubber.

In order to begin the game each player must be appropriately dressed. A hockey

uniform consists of a series of pads and a helmet to protect you from the lighting fast

pucks, the rock hard ice floor and of Course the aggressive players. The helmet is the

most important thing to wear. It protects your head in case of a direct impact like airbags protect your head from hitting the dash in a car. There are many brands and sizes to choose from. The most reliable and well known is a company called "Bauer." The size usually depends on the shape and measurements of your head. The next impo...