Hockey will get underway this week at the Milan Olympics featuring NHL players for the first time in more than a decade.
Here’s a reminder and refresher that the rules at the Olympics will be a bit different than when you watch your typical NHL game.
During the preliminary rounds of the Olympic hockey tournament, if games are tied after regulation, there will be a five-minute 3-on-3 overtime, followed by a five-player shootout if the tie isn’t broken.
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In the quarterfinals and semifinals, the overtime period will be extended to ten minutes.
In the gold medal game, there will be no shootout, but the overtime period will be played as 3-on-3.
During the Olympics, fighting is not allowed and the penalty for doing so is ejection. Playing without a helmet subjects players to a minor penalty.
Roster sizes allow teams to have a maximum of 23 players, consisting of 20 skaters and 3 goalies.
Teams are allowed to dress two more players than allowed during NHL play, meaning that a game lineup can feature 13 forwards and 7 defensemen.
Rink sizes at the Palaltalia Santa Giulia and the Fiera Milano arenas will be a little more snug than standard NHL dimensions (200 ft x 85). The rink size measures roughly 196.85 feet long by 85.3 feet wide.
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There will be shorter intermissions, with breaks lasting 15 minutes instead of 18 like NHL fans are accustomed to.
Penguins captain Sidney Crosby will also be captaining Team Canada for this year’s Olympics, the same role he served for the 2014 Olympics in Sochi.
