Hooking in ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 is the act of impeding or obstructing an opponent's progress by placing the shaft or blade of the stick on the midsection of the opposing player and pulling him or her back. Hooking is illegal and normally results in a minor penalty being assessed to the offending player.

Hooking in the rules

The NHL covers hooking in Rule 55, which defines it as "the act of using the stick in a manner that enables a player or goalkeeper to restrain an opponent." The NHL groups hooking with other "Restraining fouls" such as holding, interference and tripping

Tripping (ice hockey)

A tripping penalty in ice hockey is called by the referee when a player trips an opposing player with their stick, or uses their skate against the other players skate, causing them to lose balance and fall ....

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The IIHF covers hooking in Rule 533, defining a player guilty of hooking as one "who impedes or seeks to impede the progress of an opponent by hooking him with the stick."

Both codes allow for hooking to be penalized with either a minor or major penalty; the latter is imposed for injuring an opponent by hooking, and carries with it an automatic game misconduct.

Emphasis in NHL

Following the 2004-2005 NHL lockout, then NHL made "Zero tolerance on Interference, Hooking and Holding/Obstruction" its top priority for game officials. Since that time the league and its officials have made a significant effort to follow up on that priority, and the game is being played in a more open style as a result.