Saucer pass

Last updated

The saucer pass is an ice hockey technique in which the puck is passed to another player in such a way that it flies in the air like a flying saucer. This makes the pass more difficult to intercept by opposing players but it will still land flat on the ice making it simple to control for the receiving player. The saucer pass is widely used nowadays due to the difficulty of intercepting it. [1] It requires a high degree of skill to perform a saucer pass to a team member while also making it difficult for an opposing player to intercept it. The typical height used for a saucer pass depends on the number of opposing players surrounding the player initiating the pass. If the pass is in front of the goal within a few meters, it usually rises a maximum of 30 centimeters above the ice level. In the case of a "torpedo attack"—a saucer pass covering tens of meters, often starting from the passer's defensive zone—the pass can easily rise over 3 meters from the ice to avoid being captured by an opposing player's glove (capturing a pass with a stick above one's own shoulder level or above goal height is prohibited close to a goal).

The inventor of the saucer pass is commonly credited as the Finnish ice hockey legend Raimo Helminen. According to the book Raipe - vaatimattomuuden lyhyt oppimäärä, he invented the pass when he was playing against grown-up men from his neighborhood when he was a young child in Koivistonkylä, Tampere, Finland. [2]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bandy</span> Ballgame on ice

Bandy is a winter sport and ball sport played by two teams wearing ice skates on a large ice surface while using sticks to direct a ball into the opposing team's goal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Field hockey</span> Team sport played with sticks and a spherical ball

Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with 11 players in total, made up of 10 field players and a goalkeeper. Teams must move a hockey ball around a pitch by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting circle and then into the goal. The match is won by the team that scores the most goals. Matches are played on grass, watered turf, artificial turf, or indoor boarded surface.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ice hockey</span> Team sport played on ice using sticks, skates, and a puck

Ice hockey is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hockey sticks to control, advance, and shoot a closed, vulcanized, rubber disc called a "puck" into the other team's goal. Each goal is worth one point. The team which scores the most goals is declared the winner. In a formal game, each team has six skaters on the ice at a time, barring any penalties, one of whom is the goaltender. Ice hockey is a full contact sport, and is considered to be one of the more physically demanding team sports. It is distinct from field hockey, in which players move a ball around a non-frozen pitch using field hockey sticks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goalkeeper</span> Player in sports preventing the opposing team from scoring

In many team sports that involve scoring goals, the goalkeeper is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by blocking or intercepting opposing shots on goal. Such positions exist in bandy, rink bandy, camogie, association football, Gaelic football, international rules football, floorball, handball, hurling, field hockey, ice hockey, roller hockey, lacrosse, ringette, rinkball, water polo, and shinty, as well as in other sports.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goal (sports)</span> Method of scoring in many sports

In sport, a goal may refer to either an instance of scoring, or to the physical structure or area where an attacking team must send the ball or puck in order to score points. The structure of a goal varies from sport to sport, and one is placed at or near each end of the playing field for each team to defend. For many sports, each goal structure usually consists of two vertical posts, called goal posts, supporting a horizontal crossbar. A goal line marked on the playing surface between the goal posts demarcates the goal area. Thus, the objective is to send the ball or puck between the goal posts, under or over the crossbar, and across the goal line. Other sports may have other types of structures or areas where the ball or puck must pass through, such as the basketball hoop. Sports which feature goal scoring are also commonly known as invasion games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goal (ice hockey)</span> Point scoring in ice hockey

In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck entirely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to. Typically, a player on the team attempting to score shoots the puck with their stick towards the goal net opening, and a player on the opposing team called a goaltender tries to block the shot to prevent a goal from being scored against their team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Centre (ice hockey)</span> Ice hockey position

The centre in ice hockey is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play is the middle of the ice, away from the sideboards. Centres have more flexibility in their positioning and therefore often end up covering more ice surface than any other player. Centres are ideally strong, fast skaters who are able to backcheck quickly from deep in the opposing zone. Generally, centres are expected to be gifted passers more so than goal scorers, although there are exceptions - typically larger centres who position themselves directly in front of the net in order to score off rebounds. They are also expected to have exceptional "ice vision", Hockey IQ, intelligence, and creativity. They also generally are the most defensively-oriented forwards on the ice, as they are expected to play the role of the third player in defense, after the defencemen. Centres usually play as part of a line of players that are substituted frequently to keep fresh and keep the game moving.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winger (ice hockey)</span> Ice hockey position

Winger, in the game of ice hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play is along the outer playing areas. They typically flank the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink. Wingers generally have the least defensive responsibilities out of any position on the ice, however they are still tasked with defensive duties such as forechecking duties or covering the point in the defensive zone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Defenceman</span> Position in ice hockey

Defence or defense in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners. They were once called cover-point.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goaltender</span> Person who tends the goal in ice hockey

In ice hockey, the goaltender is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near the area in front of the net called the goal crease. Goaltenders tend to stay at or beyond the top of the crease to cut down on the angle of shots. In the modern age of goaltending there are two common styles, butterfly and hybrid. Because of the power of shots, the goaltender wears special equipment to protect the body from direct impact.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shot (ice hockey)</span> Attempt to score a goal in ice hockey

A shot in ice hockey is an attempt by a player to score a goal by striking or snapping the puck with their stick in the direction of the net.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raimo Helminen</span> Finnish ice hockey player

Raimo Ilmari Helminen is a Finnish former professional ice hockey player. He is often called "Raipe" or "Maestro" by his fans. He is the world record holder for most international games played by a hockey player, as well as for tied for being the hockey player in the most Olympic Games, and his 26 seasons as a professional is one of the longest careers in professional hockey history. He was inducted into the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uusikaupunki</span> Town in Southwest Finland, Finland

Uusikaupunki is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the Southwest Finland region, 71 kilometres (44 mi) northwest of Turku and 97 kilometres (60 mi) south of Pori. The municipality has a population of 14,939 and covers an area of 551.65 square kilometres (212.99 sq mi) of which 49.04 km2 (18.93 sq mi) is inland water. The population density is 29.69 inhabitants per square kilometre (76.9/sq mi).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roller in-line hockey</span> Sport discipline

Roller in-line hockey, American roller hockey or inline hockey, is a variant of hockey played on a hard, smooth surface, with players using inline skates to move and ice hockey sticks to shoot a hard, plastic puck into their opponent's goal to score points. The sport is a very fast-paced and free-flowing game and is considered a contact sport, but body checking is prohibited. There are five players including the goalkeeper from each team on the rink at a time, while teams normally consist of 16 players. There are professional leagues, one of which is the National Roller Hockey League (NRHL). While it is not a contact sport, there are exceptions, i.e. the NRHL involves fighting.

This is a list of common terms used in the sport of ice hockey along with the definitions of these terms.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ringette</span> Team sport played on ice

Ringette is a non-contact winter team sport played on an ice rink using ice hockey skates, straight sticks with drag-tips, and a blue, rubber, pneumatic ring designed for use on ice surfaces. While the sport was originally created exclusively for female competitors, it has expanded to now include participants of all gender identities. Although ringette looks ice hockey-like and is played on ice hockey rinks, the sport has its own lines and markings, and its offensive and defensive play bear a closer resemblance to lacrosse or basketball.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ball hockey</span>

Ball hockey is a team sport and an off-ice variant of the sport of ice hockey. The sport is also a variant of one of several floor hockey game codes but more specifically a variant of street hockey.

Underwater ice hockey is a minor extreme sport that is a variant of ice hockey. It is played upside-down underneath frozen pools or ponds. Participants wear diving masks, fins, and wetsuits and use the underside of the frozen surface as the playing area or rink for a floating puck. Competitors do not use any breathing apparatus but instead surface for air every 30 seconds or so.

In ice hockey, a pass is the movement of the puck from one player to another, usually by a motion of the stick. A pass differs from a shot, in that a pass is typically weaker than a shot and is not directed at the opponent's net with the intention of scoring a goal. The function of passing in ice hockey during gameplay strongly resembles the role of passing in other goal sports such as soccer and lacrosse. Passing is one of the most fundamental skills in hockey. An effective pass is described as being "stick to stick" or "tape to tape", referring to the tape on the blade of a hockey stick. Effective passing requires good vision, anticipation, and timing, as well as execution. A player that is an effective passer will normally record many assists, which are awarded to the second and third to last player to touch the puck before a goal. The National Hockey League record for most career assists is 1,963 by Wayne Gretzky, who is considered one of the best passers of all time. Different types of passes are employed in different situations or using different techniques:

The Hockey Canada Officiating Program is the governing body for on-ice officials for all ice hockey games played under the jurisdiction of Hockey Canada. The Hockey Canada Rulebook provides in-depth explanation and examples of all rules governing hockey in Canada.

References

  1. "How to Saucer Pass - How To Hockey".
  2. Laitinen, Vesa, Raipe: vaatimattomuuden lyhyt oppimäärä, 2004 ISBN   951-96715-7-9