BREAKAWAY – Any situation during game action which meets all of these criteria:

BROKEN STICK – A stick that is not fully intact, has a broken blade or shaft, or is no longer whole.

CAGE (SKATER) – A full facemask, attached to the skater’s helmet, covering the entire face.

COACH – A coach is a team official in charge of all decisions related to how the team plays during a game, including team strategy, player changes, and naming players to serve goaltender penalties and bench- minor penalties and participate in the penalty-shot shootout. The act of coaching during a game (starting two hours before opening faceoff until the final buzzer of the game, including any overtime and/or penalty-shot shootout) involves any and all direct and/or indirect communication, through any means, with team officials and on-ice officials relating to any direct and/or indirect aspect of the game.

COMPETITIVE CONTACT – Competitive contact means body contact between two or more skaters who are in the immediate vicinity of the puck and who are trying to gain possession of the puck. These skaters are reasonably allowed to push and lean into each other provided that possession of the puck remains the sole object of the contact.

CONFRONTATION – Any incident in which opponents initiate physical contact in an unsportsmanlike manner.

CONTROL/POSSESSION OF THE PUCK – Control means extended possession of the puck. – Control of the puck means a player is stickhandling with the puck or using his hands or feet to maintain possession of the puck. If the puck is touched by another player or his equipment, or hits the goal or goes free in any manner, the player is no longer considered to be in control of the puck. – Possession of the puck means a player is stickhandling with the puck, intentionally directs the puck to a teammate, or freezes the puck. Any accidental contact or deflection off an opponent, goal frame, or boards does not constitute possession. The last skater to touch the puck is considered in possession of it, and he may be bodychecked provided the contact is legal and occurs during or immediately after he has lost possession of the puck.

DEFLECT/DIRECT – A deflected puck is an accidental movement of the puck by a skater’s body, stick, or skate. A directed puck is an intentional movement of the puck by a skater’s body, stick, or skate.

FACEMASK (GOALTENDER) – Either a skater’s helmet with a cage attached or a goaltender’s head and face protector.

GAME ACTION – Play when the scoreclock is running.

GOAL NET/FRAME – The goal frame consists only of the three red posts that constitute the plane of the goal – the goal posts and the crossbar. The goal net consists of the entire unit, including the goal frame and netting and base behind the goal line.

LATE HIT – A late hit constitutes reckless endangerment of a skater who no longer has control or possession of the puck. Any skater who is in the process of abandoning or losing control or possession of the puck is subject to a bodycheck so long as the aggressor is in the immediate vicinity of the skater with the puck. If the aggressor must move to the skater and makes forceful contact, the aggressor risks turning a bodycheck into a late hit by virtue of the vulnerable position of the opponent and the degree of force of the hit.

MINOR/BENCH-MINOR PENALTY – A minor penalty is a two-minute penalty assessed to a specific player. A bench minor is also a two-minute penalty, assessed to the team without a specific player identified. Bench-minor penalties can be served by any skater, designated by the coach through the captain, who was on the ice at the time the whistle stopped play or otherwise specified by these rules.

ON-ICE OFFICIAL – Either a referee or linesman.

PLAYERS/SKATERS – Players can be any team member (goaltenders, defencemen, forwards), and skaters refers only to defencemen and forwards.

PLAYING AREA – The three-dimensional area of the ice surface surrounded by the boards and protective glass but not limited to the height of the protective glass and boards.

PROPER AUTHORITIES – The governing or adjudicating body which oversees conduct of players and team officials during a game.

RECKLESS – Any action that endangers an opponent.

SHOOTING (ACT OF) – The act of propelling the puck in the direction of the goal net. Once the puck has been shot, any continuous movement of the puck without any further action by the attacking team and prior to the defending team gaining possession of the puck is considered a continuation of the shot.

TEAM OFFICIAL – Any member of a team who is not a dressed player for a game, including (but not limited to) the coach, assistant coaches, equipment and training staff, etc.

TERRITORIAL ADVANTAGE – Any decision which moves a faceoff closer to the defending zone is made to ensure there is no territorial advantage to the offending team.

VULNERABLE – A skater is considered to be in a vulnerable position when he is no longer in control or possession of the puck and he is either not aware of an impending hit or he is not prepared for the hit. A bodycheck to an opponent who is vulnerable is automatically considered reckless even if that bodycheck would be considered legal to a non- vulnerable opponent.