Ice Hockey Plays

In the game of hockey, ice hockey plays are what make a game. Whether it is getting out of your zone, getting in to your opponents zone, you will need plays. Even if the players know how to skate, how to shoot or how to check, it will not do much good without ice hockey plays. Here are some of the effective plays in the game.

The dump in

The dump in is a very effective ice hockey play to get the puck out of the central zone into your opponents zone. Dumping the puck consists of shooting the puck in the back of your opponent’s zone. Once the dump in is made, the right decision is to go chase after it so that you will be the first on the puck. If this is the case, you will be able to make a quick passing decision that might lead to a goal.

The dump in is also an effective tool when a team wants to make a line change with little risk. The only real downside to the dump in is that you might lose puck possession. Another variation on the dump in is to skate along the boards in the neutral zone and shoot the puck along the boards so that it follows them around the back of the net. A teammate can then pick up the puck in the opposite corner.

Forward criss cross

The criss cross works best when there is a 3 on 2 situation. It takes three attackers heading down the opponents zone do this play. There are a couple of variations of the play but they all have the important criss crossing passing between attackers. The actual criss crossing is meant to confuse and misbalance the defence of the opposing team.

An example of this is the defenseman passing the puck to the right wing, the wing stays back in the right lane to provide defensive coverage if the criss cross play fails or a pass intercepted. The left wing and center criss cross in the neutral zone and the right wing makes a crisp pass to the left wing as they pass behind the center. They then enter the offensive zone at a higher speed than the defence that has moved laterally to cover the attackers. The right wing then follows them into the zone and moves into the high slot. Keys to an effective criss cross are quick skating and crisp passes.

Zone defense in hockey

Zone defense is very important when the opposing team is trying to attack your net. The most basic defense is your own zones defense. Each player on the defensive line has a part of the rink to protect. The defensemen are responsible to protect a zone from the face off dot into the corner and back to the front of the net. The wingmen have the complementary zone from the face off dot to the blue line. The center men stay in the middle of the defensive zone.

With these ice hockey plays, the basics of the hockey game are covered. Two offensive plays and one defensive play should help your game play for all 3 periods.

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