Women's ACHA: body contact, not body checking
Rule numbers: NCAA 94.1 2026-27 NCAA women's point of emphasis on Rule 94 (in the ACHA additions)
Body checking is not permitted anywhere on the ice in women's hockey. It means a deliberate, clearly identifiable hit using the hip, shoulder, arm or torso to knock the puck carrier off the puck; the penalty is a minor, a major and game misconduct, or a major and disqualification. The 2026-27 point of emphasis, reproduced in the ACHA additions, describes legal body contact: angling, lane control, shoulder-to-shoulder contact from even or ahead, and steering a player along the end wall. Any contact from behind the puck carrier is to be penalized as body checking. Contact without the puck falls under interference.
A player may position their body to impede, but they may not propel their body to impact.
- Clock
- Body checking: minor, or 5:00 with a game misconduct or disqualification.
Example
Women's ACHA game. A defender even with the puck carrier leans in shoulder to shoulder, with no extension, and wins the puck. That is legal body contact (parallel possession pursuit).
Common mistake: Penalizing every collision that sends a player to the ice; the official judges the action, not the outcome.