Ball hockey
Ball hockey game between USA (Blue) and Slovakia (White) at 2011 World Ball Hockey Championship.
Highest governing bodyInternational Street and Ball Hockey Federation (International)

USA Ball Hockey (United States)
Canadian Ball Hockey Association (Canada)
NicknamesStreet Hockey, US = dek hockey, some places in Canada call it "road" hockey
Characteristics
TypeBoth indoor and outdoor
EquipmentRequired = A ball, a hockey stick, a net. Optional in pickup but mandatory in leagues= shin pads, gloves. Optional everywhere for adults, mandatory for kids in leagues = helmet.

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.

Ball hockey is patterned after and closely related to ice hockey, except the game is played on foot on a non-ice surface, player equipment is different, and an orange ball is used instead of a hockey puck. The objective of the game is to score more goals than the opposing team by shooting the ball into the opposing team's net.

Gameplay

Teams consist of five runners and one goaltender. The five runners are broken down into positions of three forwards and two defense-men, right and left. The forwards are further described by position name: Left Wing, Right Wing, and Center. These positions are the same as in ice hockey. Tournament Ball Hockey rules are numerous and too long to list in this article. A list of the official ball hockey tournament rules of the I.S.B.H.F. can be found online.[1] For general information's sake, Ball Hockey rules typically stipulate the following basics which means that when one is playing under these rules, then Ball Hockey is being played:

  • Offside is determined by a "floating blue line". The concept can be difficult to understand for non-hockey enthusiasts, but the simplest explanation is as follows: When the ball crosses the defending team's blue line, the attacking team is onside. The attacking team then has the entire zone up to the center line with which to work the ball around and still be considered onside. Once the ball crosses the center red line the attacking zone is "lost", and the attacking team's players must clear (retreat past) the defending team's blue line and have the ball enter past the defending team's blue line to be considered onside again.
  • Icing is called "flooring"in ball hockey.
  • You can raise your stick above the shoulder to call for a pass.
  • You can close your hand around the ball provided that you bring the ball straight down to your feet and do not change the direction you are moving in.
  • International rink dimensions are the same as international ice hockey rinks 197 ft × 98.4 ft.
  • North American rink dimensions are the same as North American ice hockey rinks 200 ft × 85 ft.

Equipment

The ball used is a specially designed one for ball hockey and street hockey. The International Street and Ball Hockey Federation, the worldwide governing body of official street hockey tournaments and leagues, officially recognizes two types of ball for play: a hard (Pro) version for adult warm climate play and a soft version for non-summer play and younger youth age groups. At the highest levels of ball hockey, teams use a hard, orange, small, round, and smooth orange/reddish ball 3 inches in diameter. This allows for players to make the ball curve by over/under exaggerating a windup and follow through on their shots. Several ball manufacturers now market the balls with the temperature range the ball was designed for on the packaging itself. Although there is no certified industry standard for the balls since no street hockey standards organization exists, all hockey ball manufacturers sell their balls according to the following temperature range: red/orange = hot/warm above 60 degrees (15 C), pink = cool - between 40 and 60 degrees (4.5-15 C)yellow = cold - below 40 degrees (4.5 C).

In most non-international tournaments, the following equipment requirements are instituted for the runners:

  • Helmets are mandatory for players.
  • Some type of hand gloves must be worn, and they do not have to be hockey gloves but they can not have strings lose. Specific gloves for the sport of ball hockey have been developed and are manufactured and sold to ball hockey players.
  • Some type of shin guards must be worn, and they do not have to be hockey shin guards. Specific guards for the sport of ball hockey have been developed and are manufactured and sold to ball hockey players.
  • Teams must have matching jerseys with numbers. These can often be T-shirts with numbers on them.
  • Appropriate footwear for running.
  • Some type of official hockey stick

NOTE: Specific helmets, shin guards, and gloves for the sport of ball hockey have been developed and are manufactured and sold to ball hockey players, but it is not mandatory for players to wear these for all The following equipment requirements are instituted for goaltenders:

  • Goaltender's helmet with full face mask
  • Chest protector
  • Thigh pads
  • Goaltender leg pads
  • Goaltender Glove or trapper
  • Goaltender Blocker
  • Goaltender Stick
  • Shirt that fits OVER all chest equipment
  • Appropriate footwear

The flooring used for ball hockey tournaments is typically a specific type of a game court, often referred to as a "sport court". Sport courts very simply are plastic modular tiles, typically 1 square foot, that snap together for quick installation and removal. Sport court, is the tiling of choice in Montreal at the famous arena Le Rinque. The tiles come in a variety of colors and are manufactured by several different companies. The tiles often come prefabricated with lines on them which make up the markings required for tournament play, such as center and blue lines, face-off circles, and goal creases.

For official international tournaments, the I.S.B.H.F. rules apply, and players must wear protective equipment as stipulated in their rule book.

Governing bodies

International

The official worldwide governing body of the sport is the International Street and Ball Hockey Federation (ISBHF),[2] which operates out of the Czech Republic and Canada. The federation consists of 39 countries and recognizes hundreds of thousands of players playing in organized leagues throughout the world.

Canada

The Canada Ball Hockey Association (CBHA) is a registered non-profit organization. It is officially recognized as the governing body of the sport of ball hockey in Canada by the International Street & Ball Hockey Federation (ISBHF) and Hockey Canada. Nine different Provinces are part of the Association: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland & Labrador.

Team Canada Program:

The Canada Ball Hockey Association has a storied history with its Team Canada Programs. The first International Street & Ball Hockey Federation World Championship took place for Men in 1996 in Bratislava, Slovakia with Canada claiming victory in the inaugural event.

Since those early days the international game has grown in leaps and bounds and now has World Championships for Women, Youth Under 16, Under 18 and Under 20 as well as a Masters Division for players 35+ and Legends Division for players 45+.

The Men's, Women's and Legends World Championships are held every two years on even numbered years while the Junior, and Masters World Championships are held on odd numbered years. Players from across Canada are scouted at Regional and National events for selections.

Background:

Founded in late 1977, by John Forrest, Alan Tomalty, Paul Colture and Ken White, the CBHA's first Men's National Championship was an open event held in Ottawa in 1978, with 16 competing teams from Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, and Alberta. The York Canadians, from Toronto, defeated Ottawa Globe Trophy 11 to 2 to capture the inaugural title. This event has continued annually since then, with the top teams from each province qualifying through their respective provincial championships.

Over the years, storied franchises have arisen, and many outstanding athletes have left their mark on the history of the sport, including NHL’ers Dino Ciccarelli, Lou Franceschetti and Glen Metropolit who have their names engraved on the National trophy. A detailed list of medal winning teams can be found under the Canadian Cup section of this website, and a list of the game's greatest players in the Awards section.

In order to promote inter-provincial play at the less competitive levels, the CBHA began hosting Men's Eastern & Western Canada ‘B’ Championships in 1989, and expanded to ‘C’ Championships in 2000, and ‘D’ Championships in 2013. These annual events are designed to gather the provinces into two separate regional competitions, with the winners being promoted to the next higher level of play in the following year.

The first Women's Nationals were held in 1987 in Calgary, with the Canadiana Cougars, of Toronto, needing double overtime to win the championship 4 to 3 over St. John's NTV, from Newfoundland. Manitoba and BC were the other participating provinces. The women's game has grown steadily since that time, and featured many ice hockey Olympians at the elite level over the years. Since 2003, each year has focused on Participation for the women's program, and the Nationals have offered ‘B’ level and 'C' level championships as well.

In 1999, Toronto hosted the CBHA's inaugural Junior Nationals (under 19's) with the Vaughan Capitals, of Ontario, claiming gold with an 8 to 0 win over the BC Allstars, and Belleville (ON) defeating Alberta for the bronze medal. The junior programs across Canada are extremely popular for the 16 to 18 year old age groups, and falls under the auspices of the numerous minor ball hockey programs in the CBHA, which offer house leagues for children as young as five. Youth Regional Championships commenced in 2003, with events in Eastern and Western Canada for under-16's, under-13's, and under-10's. Details can be found in the Youth Cups section of this website.

JACK Cup:

In 2023, Canada Ball Hockey introduced a new annual cup, the JACK Cup, which is awarded to all Canadian National Championship winning teams! The CBHA has been the hallmark when it comes to ball hockey in Canada. Thus, to honour those who first spearheaded the association and took serious efforts to organize events, rules and overall development, THE NEW ANNUAL CHAMPIONSHIP CUP was named after the founding fathers.

We give thanks to: ‘J’ohn Forrest ‘A’lan Tomalty Paul ‘C’olter ‘K’en White

United States

The governing body for ball hockey is USA Ball Hockey.[3] There is one officially sanctioned league operating in the United States, the National Ball Hockey League (Players, however, are not paid for playing in this league. Teams are allowed to secure sponsorships that cover any costs for players jerseys, equipment and entry fees for the season[4]

Europe and Asia

Several European and Asian countries have their own governing bodies where the sport has enough players to have a national following and presence. A listing can be found at the ISBHF website.[5]

History

In North America, Natives were first observed playing a variant of the game in 1572. In the 1960s Canada became the first nation to play the sport in organized leagues, followed by the United States the next decade, then countries in Europe in the 1980s and 1990s.

Recreational levels

Refer to the Street Hockey article for a more thorough description of recreational play.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "ISBHF" (PDF). ISBHF.com. Retrieved 2016-12-14.
  2. ↑ "ISBHF -". ISBHF.com. Retrieved 13 December 2016.
  3. ↑ "USA Ball Hockey".
  4. ↑ "National Ball Hockey League". thenbhl.com.
  5. ↑ "Members". ISBHF.com. Archived from the original on 2017-02-06. Retrieved 2016-12-14.

Media related to Ball hockey at Wikimedia Commons

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.