The guide outlines the main NHL rules for game structure, scoring, offside, icing, and penalties. It explains power plays, reviewable calls, and how standings points receive during the regular season.
It also compares regular-season overtime and shootouts with Stanley Cup Playoff overtime, which continues in full 20-minute sudden-death periods until a goal is scored. The post notes that NHL rules differ from those used in other hockey competitions.
An NHL game consists of three 20-minute periods. The team with more goals at the end of regulation wins. If a regular-season game is tied, the teams play up to five minutes of three-on-three sudden-death overtime before a shootout if necessary.
Most minor penalties last two minutes and normally give the opposition a power play. Major penalties last five minutes. The NHL uses different overtime rules in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, where teams continue playing full 20-minute sudden-death periods until somebody scores.
This guide follows the NHL Official Rules for 2025-26, which remained the downloadable rules reference on the NHL’s official Video Rulebook page as of 11 August 2026. The NHL has already announced an 84-game schedule for each club in 2026-27, but that schedule change is separate from the playing rules explained here.
Readers can consult the NHL Official Rules and the league’s NHL Video Rulebook for the full regulations.
These are NHL rules. Other ice hockey competitions, including those governed by the International Ice Hockey Federation or college and amateur bodies, use their own rulebooks.
For more coverage of the league, visit World in Sport’s NHL section.
How an NHL Game Works
Each NHL team may dress 20 players for a game: 18 skaters and two goalkeepers.
During normal play, each team has five skaters and one goalkeeper on the ice. Coaches can change skaters while play continues, provided the change complies with the substitution rules.
A coach may also remove the goalkeeper for an extra skater. Teams commonly do this late in a game when they need a goal, although the rules allow it in other situations.
Regulation consists of three 20-minute periods of actual playing time. The clock stops when officials stop play, so an NHL period usually takes considerably longer than 20 minutes in real time.
The rulebook provides for an 18-minute intermission between regulation periods unless the NHL designates another length.
The teams change ends between periods.
How Scoring Works
A goal counts when the puck legally passes completely over the goal line between the posts and underneath the crossbar.
The whole puck must cross the line. A puck resting partly on the goal line has not produced a goal.
A player may score when the puck deflects into the net from a skate or another part of the body, provided the action does not break another rule.
However, officials disallow a goal when an attacking player uses a distinct kicking motion to propel the puck into the net. Players also cannot deliberately bat or throw the puck into the goal with a hand.
Other reasons for disallowing a goal include goalkeeper interference and playing the puck with a high stick above the permitted height. An attacking player being offside before the scoring sequence, the goal frame being displaced, or play already being stopped.
The player who scores receives one goal in the individual statistics. Officials may award up to two assists to players who helped create the goal. Provided the defending team did not gain the type of possession or control that breaks the attacking sequence.
How NHL Standings Points Work
A team receives two standings points for a win.
If a regular-season game is tied after regulation, both teams have already secured one point. The winner of overtime or the shootout receives the additional point.
A team that loses in regulation receives no standings points.
This system means that an overtime or shootout game awards three total standings points, while a regulation result awards two.
Offside Explained
Offside prevents attacking players from entering the attacking zone ahead of the puck.
The blue lines divide the rink into three main areas: two attacking or defending zones and the neutral zone.
In simple terms, an attacking player is offside when both skates have completely crossed the leading edge of the attacking blue line before the puck enters the zone.
A player remains onside if at least one skate is still touching the blue line or has not completely crossed it.
There is an important exception for a player carrying the puck. A player who already has possession and control may cross the blue line ahead of the puck while maintaining that control.
Officials can also use delayed offside. Instead of stopping play immediately, attacking players can leave the zone, allowing their team to regain an onside position.
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How Icing Works
Icing prevents a team from repeatedly sending the puck the full length of the rink to escape pressure.
In a standard situation, icing occurs when a player shoots, bats. Or deflects the puck from their own half of the rink beyond the opposition’s goal line without another player legally playing it.
The NHL uses hybrid icing.
A linesperson does not always wait for a player to physically touch the puck. Instead, the official judges which player would reach it first. That decision must be made no later than the point at which the first player reaches the end-zone face-off dots.
If the race is too close to call, the official calls icing.
After an icing offence, the offending team normally cannot make a line change before the next face-off. There are limited exceptions, including replacing a goalkeeper who has been removed to bring on an extra attacker or replacing an injured player.
A team that is genuinely short-handed because of a penalty is generally allowed to ice the puck without receiving an icing stoppage.
NHL Penalties Explained
Officials penalise actions that break the NHL’s playing rules.
Common examples include tripping, hooking, holding and interference. More dangerous forms of physical contact can fall under rules covering boarding, charging, elbowing, checking from behind, illegal checks to the head, kneeing or other offences.
The precise penalty depends on the applicable rule and the circumstances. Officials have discretion under several rules, so the same broad type of incident does not automatically produce the same penalty every time.
| Penalty | Duration | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Minor | 2 minutes | Player normally leaves the ice and cannot be replaced during the penalty. |
| Bench minor | 2 minutes | Penalty is assessed to the team and served by a designated skater. |
| Double-minor | 4 minutes | Effectively consists of two consecutive minor penalties. |
| Major | 5 minutes | Player cannot be replaced for five minutes and the penalty does not end after a power-play goal. |
| Misconduct | 10 minutes | Player serves 10 minutes, but a replacement may enter immediately if no accompanying penalty makes the team short-handed. |
| Game misconduct | Rest of game | Player is removed from the game. A substitute is permitted unless another accompanying penalty affects team strength. |
| Match penalty | Rest of game | Player is removed and automatically suspended from further competition pending a ruling. The team must also serve the required five-minute penalty. |
What Happens During a Power Play?
A team has a power play when an opposition penalty leaves it with more skaters on the ice.
The penalised team is described as short-handed.
If a short-handed team is serving one or more minor or bench-minor penalties and the opposition scores, the first applicable minor penalty normally ends.
That rule does not mean every penalty disappears after a goal.
A major penalty lasts for the full five minutes even if the opposition scores several times. A misconduct penalty also operates differently because it does not, by itself, reduce the number of skaters available to the team.
Coincidental penalties can also result in neither team gaining the usual numerical advantage.
Does High-Sticking Always Mean Four Minutes if There Is Blood?
No.
This is one of the most commonly misunderstood NHL penalty rules.
Illegal high-sticking contact above an opponent’s shoulders normally results in a minor penalty. If the stick contacts the neck, face, or head and causes an injury, the referee can assess a double minor.
The official rule refers to an injury, including one involving blood. Blood is therefore not the only possible test for a four-minute penalty.
The referee may use video review to confirm whether the high stick caused the injury and whether the correct player’s stick was responsible.
More serious deliberate high-stick incidents can lead to a match penalty.
Which Major Penalties Are Reviewed?
The NHL requires referees to review assessed major penalties other than fighting majors.
After reviewing the incident, the referee can confirm the major, reduce it to a lesser penalty or rescind it where the rule allows.
Match penalties also receive an on-ice review. The referee can confirm, reduce or rescind the call according to the applicable rule.
How Regular-Season NHL Overtime Works
A regular-season game that is level after regulation moves into sudden-death overtime.
Each team starts overtime with three skaters and one goalkeeper. The period lasts a maximum of five minutes.
The first goal ends the game immediately.
The NHL introduced the three-on-three format to create more open ice and increase the likelihood of deciding games before a shootout. The league continues to use the five-minute three-on-three system in regular-season games.
Penalties can change the number of skaters.
Because the rules do not reduce a team below three skaters in overtime, a standard penalty generally turns three-on-three play into a four-on-three advantage. A further penalty can produce a five-on-three situation.
Once penalties expire, the teams return to the correct overtime strength at the appropriate stoppage.
There is also an unusual rule involving the goalkeeper.
A team can voluntarily remove its goalkeeper for an extra attacker in overtime. However, if that team then lose while the goalkeeper is voluntarily off the ice, they normally forfeit the standings point they earned for reaching overtime.
The rule contains an exception when the goalkeeper was removed during a delayed penalty against the opposition.
World in Sport also has a broader comparison of overtime rules in the NBA, NFL and NHL.
How the NHL Shootout Works
If nobody scores during five minutes of regular-season overtime, the game moves to a shootout.
Each team initially receives three attempts.
The home team chooses whether to shoot first or second. The teams then alternate attempts.
A team can win before all six scheduled attempts have taken place if the trailing side can no longer draw level.
If the score remains tied after three attempts each, the shootout moves to sudden-death rounds.
A player cannot normally take a second attempt until every eligible player on that team has taken one. The rule contains provisions for situations where injuries or penalties leave the teams with different numbers of eligible shooters.
Players serving certain misconduct penalties or who have received a game misconduct or match penalty are not eligible to participate.
The winning team receives one additional team goal in the official final score. However, the player who scores the decisive shootout attempt does not receive an individual goal in their season statistics.
How Stanley Cup Playoff Overtime Differs
The Stanley Cup Playoffs do not use the regular-season three-on-three format or a shootout.
If a playoff game is tied after regulation, the teams have a 15-minute intermission before playing a full 20-minute sudden-death overtime period.
They play five-on-five, subject to penalties.
If neither team scores, there is another intermission, followed by another 20-minute overtime period. This continues for as long as necessary.
The first legal goal ends the game.
That creates a fundamental difference between regular-season and Playoffs hockey. Regular-season overtime has a five-minute limit before a shootout. Stanley Cup Playoff overtime has no shootout and no fixed limit on how many periods can be played.
Who Officiates an NHL Game?
The standard NHL officiating crew consists of two referees and two linespersons.
Referees handle most penalty decisions and major game-management calls.
Linespersons primarily deal with offside and icing, as well as conducting many face-offs. They also have responsibilities for reporting certain offences under the rulebook.
Officials receive support from the NHL Situation Room for specific video review situations.
How Coach’s Challenges and Video Review Work
A Coach’s Challenge allows a team to request review of specified plays related to a goal or, in one case, a delay-of-game penalty.
Challengeable situations include whether an attacking team entered the zone offside before a goal, certain missed stoppages before a goal and goalkeeper interference.
The NHL also permits a challenge of a puck-over-glass delay-of-game penalty when video can establish that the puck deflected off a player. Stick, glass or boards before leaving play. The process can rescind an assessed penalty. It cannot be used to create a puck-over-glass penalty that officials did not call. The NHL added that challenge category for the 2024-25 season.
A failed first Coach’s Challenge results in a two-minute delay-of-game penalty.
If a team makes another unsuccessful challenge after already having an unsuccessful challenge in that game, the penalty becomes a four-minute double-minor.
During the final minute of the third period and throughout overtime, the NHL Situation Room initiates reviews of situations that would otherwise fall within the relevant Coach’s Challenge process.
The league also conducts automatic video reviews of specified goal situations under its separate video-review rules.
Are NHL Rules the Same as All Ice Hockey Rules?
No.
The NHL has its own rulebook. International, college, junior and amateur competitions may use different rules.
Differences can affect rink dimensions, overtime formats, disciplinary procedures, video review and other areas.
Fans should therefore avoid assuming that an NHL rule automatically applies to an IIHF tournament, an NCAA game, or a domestic competition.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Many Periods Are in an NHL Game?
There are three 20-minute regulation periods.
Regular-season overtime can add up to five minutes before a shootout. Stanley Cup Playoff games instead use repeated 20-minute overtime periods until a team scores.
Does Every Power-Play Goal End the Penalty?
No.
A power-play goal can terminate the applicable minor or bench-minor penalty when the scoring team have the numerical advantage. A five-minute major does not end because of a goal.
Can a Short-Handed NHL Team Ice the Puck?
Generally, yes. A team that is officially short-handed because of a penalty can normally send the puck beyond the opposition’s goal line without receiving an icing call. Subject to the specific exceptions in the rulebook.
Is Blood Required for a Double-Minor High-Sticking Penalty?
No.
The NHL rule covers high-stick contact to the neck, face or head that causes injury, described as drawing blood or otherwise. Officials can therefore assess a double-minor without blood where the requirements of the rule are met.
Do NHL Playoff Games Have Shootouts?
No.
Stanley Cup Playoff games continue through 20-minute sudden-death overtime periods until a legal goal decides the game.
Understanding periods, goals, offside, icing and penalty strength covers much of what a new NHL viewer needs to follow a game. The main distinction to remember is overtime: three-on-three and potentially a shootout during the regular season, but full sudden-death periods throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
More explainers are available in the World in Sport sports guides section.
