For referees, linespersons and off-ice officials
Plain-English, cited help for officiating ice hockey under USA Hockey, NFHS, NCAA and ACHA rules: how to sign up, what the rules say, how to practise, and who to contact.
Week of October 26, 2026 · one card for each code
Rule numbers: USAH 407(a) USAH 407(b) USAH 407(c)
A goalkeeper's penalties are charged to the goalkeeper but served by a teammate.
Read the full card: The goalkeeper never serves time in the penalty box
Rule numbers: NFHS 4-8-1 NFHS 4-8-2 NFHS 4-3-2 NFHS 4-4-3
Who sits for a goalkeeper depends on the penalty. For a minor, the goalkeeper stays in net and the captain picks a teammate who was on the ice at the moment of the foul to serve it.
Rule numbers: NCAA 84.1 NCAA 84.2
A player may knock the puck down or bat it with an open hand, or move it along the ice with a hand.
Read the full card: Hand passes in your own defending zone no longer stop play
Rule numbers: ACHA 2026-28 Overtime and Shootout Requirements, OT Notes 1-3
The ACHA overtime document explains how to get to 3-on-3 when penalties carry over from regulation.
Read the full card: Overtime strength when regulation ends on a power play
Load a casebook situation, press play, and watch the scoreboard, the penalty bench and the scoresheet stay in step. Every ruling shows its rule number, and you can replay the same play under another code.