Delayed penalty, then a violation by the other team: neutral-zone face-off
Rule numbers: USAH 612(b) USAH 409(a)
When a penalty adds time to one team's penalty clock, the next face-off is normally at a defending-zone spot of the offending team. Rule 612(b) lists four exceptions. A penalty after a goal, or at the start or end of a period, goes to center ice. If the defending team is penalized and attackers enter the zone past the outside edge of the end-zone circles, the face-off moves to the neutral zone. The one officials miss most: if play was stopped because the non-offending team committed a violation such as icing, offside, a high stick on the puck, a hand pass or a premature goalkeeper substitution, the face-off goes to the neutral-zone location that violation calls for, even though the other team is about to be shorthanded.
- On the ice
- The penalized team still serves its penalty; only the face-off location changes.
- Clock
- Post the delayed penalty normally.
Example
The referee's arm is up for a Team A penalty in Team A's defending zone. A Team B player then plays the puck with a high stick and play stops. Team A serves the penalty, but the face-off is in the neutral zone (casebook 612 Situation 13).
Common mistake: Dropping the puck in the penalized team's end because a penalty supposedly always moves the face-off there.
Sources
- USA Hockey 2025-29 Official Rules and Casebook of Ice Hockey, Rule 612(b), p. 186 (PDF p. 220)
- USA Hockey 2025-29 Official Rules and Casebook of Ice Hockey, Rule 409(a), p. 93 (PDF p. 127)
- USA Hockey 2025-29 Official Rules and Casebook of Ice Hockey, Casebook Rule 612 Situation 13, p. 243 (PDF p. 277)
Verified