HOCKEY GLOSSARY

70+ hockey terms and slang words. Bookmark this — you'll be hearing these for years.

Hockey has its own language, and a lot of it sounds like nonsense to a new fan or player. This is the glossary you'd want on Day 1.

The puck

Puck: The black rubber disc. Officially 1 inch thick, 3 inches in diameter, 6 ounces.
Apple, biscuit, rock, hamburger, donut: All slang for the puck. Different terms in different regions and locker rooms.
The five-hole: The open space between a goalie's legs. A shot through the five-hole is a "five-hole goal" or, in slang, going "between the pipes" low.
Top shelf: Upper part of the net. "Top shelf where mom keeps the peanut butter" is the classic goalie comment.

The rink

Blue line: The line that separates the offensive/defensive zones from the neutral zone. Offsides are called when a player crosses before the puck.
Red line: Center of the ice. Used for icing calls and (historically) two-line passes.
Faceoff dot: The 9 spots where faceoffs happen (2 in each zone, 4 in the neutral zone, 1 center).
Slot: The area in front of the net between the faceoff circles. Where most goals are scored from.
Point: The area just inside the blue line where defencemen take shots from. "Shoot from the point" means shoot from the blue line.
The boards: The white wall around the rink. "Going to the boards" or "cycling along the boards" means playing the puck behind the opponent's net.
The crease: The blue-painted semicircle in front of the net. The goalie's space — opponents can't run into the goalie here.

Positions

Forward: One of the three skaters responsible for offense. Includes center and two wings.
Center: The forward who takes most faceoffs and plays both offense and defense. Considered the "quarterback" of the line.
Winger (LW / RW): Forwards who play the sides. Left wing and right wing.
Defenceman (D): Plays defense. Usually two on the ice at a time.
Goaltender, goalie, netminder, tendy: The player in the net. "Tendy" is locker-room slang.
D-man, blueliner: More slang for defenceman. A "blueliner" plays at or near the blue line.

Plays and moves

Breakaway: When a player has the puck and no defender between them and the goalie except the goalie. Penalty shot if fouled.
One-timer: A shot taken directly off a pass without stopping the puck first. Hard to defend.
Saucer pass: A pass that floats over an opponent's stick or a puddle. Named for its flying-saucer shape.
Deke: Short for "deke" (deception). A move to fake out a defender — usually faking one direction then going another.
Celly, celly: Slang for a goal celebration. A big celly is a big celebration. Some are choreographed.
Dangle: To stickhandle past a defender with a fancy move. "He dangled through three guys" means he made them look silly.
Top cheddar, mitts: Slang for the hands/gloves. "Top cheddar" is a goal scorer's hands. "Mitts" are the gloves.

Goaltender slang

Pipe: The inside post of the goal. "Off the pipe and in" means a shot that hit the post and went in.
Iron: Same as the pipe — the post of the goal.
Snipe, snipe show, snipe city: A perfectly placed shot. Top-shelf snipe = perfect shot to the upper corner.
Bar down: A shot that hits the crossbar and goes down into the net. Considered one of the prettiest goals.
Glove side / blocker side: The two sides of the goalie. Goalies catch with their glove hand; they deflect with their blocker (the square pad on the stick hand). Knowing which side is which helps read shot placement.
Tendy, keeper, puck-stopper: Slang for goalie. Especially common in the UK and parts of Europe.

Equipment and arena

Bucket, bucket helmet: Slang for helmet. "He got his bucket on" means he's playing safely.
Baggie, bag: Hockey bag. "Throw it in the bag" means put it in the equipment bag.
Barn: Slang for the arena, especially a smaller or older one. "We're playing at the barn tonight" means a small, homey rink.
Tape, tape job: Hockey tape. Players tape their sticks, socks, and pants. A "tape job" is the art of taping your stick the way you like it.
Lumber, stick: Hockey stick. "He went to the lumber drawer" means a player grabbed a backup stick.

Game situations

5-on-5: Even-strength play. Each team has 5 skaters + 1 goalie.
5-on-4, 5-on-3: Power play situations. The team with more skaters has the man advantage.
4-on-4: When both teams have a player in the box simultaneously. More open ice, more goals.
3-on-3: Overtime format. More open ice than any other situation. Lots of goals. Also used in some youth leagues for development.
Empty net: When the goalie has been pulled (replaced with a sixth skater) for an offensive advantage. Common in the last minute of a game when a team is losing.
6-on-5: A team with the goalie pulled. Same as "extra attacker" or "empty net situation."

Style and culture

Bardown, BDN: A hard, clean hit. Used as an exclamation: "Bardown!"
Tic-tac-toe, tic-tac: When a player passes to one teammate who immediately passes to another without holding the puck. Originated from the Xs-and-Os pattern.
Gordie Howe hat trick: A goal, an assist, and a fight in the same game. Named for the legendary player who did it often.
Spin-o-rama: A 360-degree spin move to evade a defender. Legal in some leagues, illegal in others. Famous moment: Peter Forsberg's goal in the 1994 Olympics shootout.
Light the lamp: Slang for scoring a goal. Comes from the red goal light that turns on behind the net.
Tape-to-tape: A pass that travels the full width of the ice, from one defenceman to the other, with no one touching it. Beautiful when it works.

Stats terms

G, A, P (goals, assists, points): A goal is a goal. An assist is one of the two passes that set up a goal. Points = goals + assists.
Plus/minus (+/-): If your team scores an even-strength goal while you're on the ice, +1. If they get scored on, -1. Coincidental but useful.
GAA (goals against average): For goalies: how many goals you let in per 60 minutes. Lower is better.
SV% (save percentage): For goalies: the percentage of shots you stop. Modern NHL goalies save around 0.910 (91%).

Disclosure

Last updated 2026-09-10. AI-assisted, human-reviewed by RinkStop editorial.

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