Try Pond Hockey For Free (April 18th)

After struggling to get people to sign up and pushing back the start of a five-week pond hockey session we finally have something. On April 18th at 5:15pm Reno Pond Hockey will be hosting a try pond hockey for free event. This event will be at Reno Ice. For one hour hockey players can come play pond hockey for free. It’s a chance for seasoned vets to come play for free while giving those who haven’t played pond hockey before a chance to try it. Our main goal with this event is to create more interest in pond hockey in Reno.

The event will be fairly simple. The rink will be sectioned off into three sections. The sections will be the neutral zone and the two offensive zones. Each section will be separated at the blue lines. One pick up game will be played in each section. The games will be 4 on 4 with up to 12 players (3 shifts) on a team.

The rules for pond hockey are pretty much the same as normal ice hockey. Penalties are the same. If it’s illegal in ice hockey, don’t try to do it in pond hockey. There is no icing. There is no offsides. Shots are supposed to be kept below the waist or knee with no slap shots. The reason for keeping shots low is that in pond hockey the net is low to the ground being no more than a foot off the ground. The boarders separating the ice are also small again being only about a foot or two above the ice. Another difference is there are no faceoffs. At the beginning of a game one team starts with the puck in their end. When goals are scored, the team that scored goes back to their end allowing the other team to pull it out of their net and take the puck up the ice. Usually the team that scored lets the other team have at least one pass or waits for someone to carry the puck up before they go after the puck.

For more on similar pond hockey rules check out the U.S. Pond Hockey Championships website here.

There won’t be any goalies. Pond hockey nets are different than normal hockey nets so there is no need for goalies. Full hockey equipment is not required. What will be required is a helmet, gloves and shin guards. Skates and a stick will also be needed. Goalie equipment is basically banned. For this event a player could get away with using a goalie helmet or skates. goalie sticks will not be allowed.

For this event we are asking that players be 16 years old and older. Players do not have to RSVP. However we will be limiting the event to 72 people. The best way to RSVP is to contact us here at Reno Pond Hockey. We also have a facebook page here. A twitter here. RSVP’s can also be made by sending an email to renopondhockey@gmail.com.