Intro To Inline Hockey - Ice Hockey's Cousin (Without Ice)

Intro To Inline Hockey: Ice Hockey's Cousin That Doesn't Like Being Cold. 

The Absolute Basics

• Two teams - 8 skaters, and a goalie per team (generally). Five players each on the rink at a time (that's four skaters and one goalie). 
• Everyone’s on wheels. 
• You chase a puck. You hit it with a stick. You try to get it into the other team’s net. That’s a goal. That’s good. Do that a lot.

 The Teams

• 4 Skaters On The Rink: Zoomy little chaos goblins. 
• 1 Goalie: Human wall. Doesn't take it personally that everyone is launching pucks at them. Protect your goalie at all costs.

Game Setup

• 2 halves, each 20 minutes long with a short break in between.
• Face-offs after every goal - one player from each team goes head-to-head in a 'who's got the fastest reflexes' game to hit the puck back towards their team.
• Tied game? Straight into overtime, maybe for the golden goal or maybe even a shootout. That's when it gets really dramatic and spicy. 

 How to Win

• Score more goals than the other team. That’s it. That’s the main goal.

Don’ts (AKA: You're Going To The Penalty Box)

• No checking: This isn’t ice hockey. You can’t body-slam people like you’re auditioning for WWE. Sorry.
• No tripping, high-sticking, or slashing: Basically, don’t treat your stick like a weapon. This isn't a duel, Hamilton.
• No swearing at refs: Even if you think they deserve it. No refs = no hockey games. They don't want to punish you for being naughty. You know better. 

Style Points

• Fancy stick-handling (dangling) is encouraged.
• Falling but recovering like it was all part of your plan — bonus imaginary points.
• Celebrating your goal like you just won the Stanley Cup — absolutely allowed.
• The more colourful and potentially absurd your team jersey is, the better.

 Strategy (Kinda)

• Pass the puck.
• Don’t all chase it at once like a pack of greyhounds chasing a mechanical bunny.
• Play defense sometimes. Yeah, scoring sick goals is cool, but you know what else is cool? Stopping the other team from scoring.
• Short shifts - stay fresh so you can keep wheelin' hard.
• Maybe have a plan? But if not — skate fast, shoot hard, hope for the best.

In Short

It’s like ice hockey, but:

• No ice.
• Less violence.
• More wheelie action.
• Same chaotic joy.

Got that? Let's go a little deeper into game play with shifts, possession and passing, and the importance of playing defensively - forechecking and backchecking. 

What's A Shift?

Myth: “I can stay on the rink the whole game!”

Reality: “No you can’t. Sit down before you pass out.”

A shift is your turn on the rink during the game.

You go out, play as hard as you can for a couple of minutes, then get off before you become a liability.

Short Shifts = Good Shifts 

• You’re fresher, faster, and less useless.
• You get more energy for defense (because you’re not busy dying).
• You don’t trap your teammates on the bench.
• You actually have the strength to do cool stuff, like backcheck, pass, and, I don’t know, breathe.

 

The Golden Rules of Shifts:

1. GET OFF BEFORE YOU’RE DEAD.

If you wait until you’re exhausted, you stay out too long. You’re now a traffic cone.

Pro Tip: If you’re thinking “I’m still good!” you’ve got about 10 seconds left.

2. Change On the Fly

The puck is safely moving in the right direction? GET OFF, FAST.

Think of it like a spy movie: “Cover me, I’m going in!” except it’s “Change for me, I’m coming OFF!”

3. Don’t All Change at Once

If all four players sprint to the bench, guess what?

There’s no-one on the rink, the puck is abandoned, and the other team says “thanks, losers” and scores. 

Either run lines - so the same players are on and off at the same time and you go on and off together- or have a shift partner that you trade off with.

4. Communicate (Yelling Is Good)

“OPEN THE GATE, I'M COMING OFF!”

"GET READY, ONE COMING OFF"

“WHO’S ON? WHO’S GOT WHO?”

“I’M DYING, SEND HELP.”

Any of these are acceptable and helpful.

Possession & Passing: Control The Puck, Control The Game.

The Wrong Way: Everyone chases the puck like it owes them money.

This turns the game into:

• Chaos spaghetti.
• No structure.
• No breathing room.
• Your team gets exhausted and a bit useless.
• The other team casually takes the puck, says “thanks,” and scores while you’re all bumping into each other in the corner.

The Right Way: Control the Puck = Control the Game

Why Possession Matters:

• You get to choose when to attack.
• You make the other team react to you (which is exhausting for them).
• You slow the game down when needed.
• You make space, not chaos.
• You don’t have to constantly panic and scramble back to defend.
• The puck will always move faster than you can skate. Don't chase it around. A good pass is faster than the best skater.

POSSESSION IS POWER.

Passing: How To Make Friends and Influence The Game. 

Passing is how real plays happen. It’s like saying “Hey friend, nice work, you’re in a better spot — here’s the puck. Get that goal.”

Great passes:

• Spread out the defense like cream cheese on a bagel.
• Create odd-man rushes (like 2-on-1s).
• Open up shooting lanes.
• Tire out the other team while you stay fresh and fabulous.

Puck patience is puck power. Open up the rink, maintain your positioning and space with your team. 

 

Forechecking vs Backchecking

This is hockey speak for pest-mode defense, timed to absolute chaos. Let’s roll.

Forechecking: “HEY! GIVE ME THAT PUCK!”

Where it happens: In the opponent’s end (their side of the rink/court).

When it happens: Right after your team loses the puck and you’re like “nope, we want it back.”

Goal: Harass the enemy in their own house. Steal the puck back. Trap their players. Ruin their day.

Think of it like: You lost your toy, but instead of sulking, you sprint after the kid who took it and politely (aggressively) try to get it back before he runs home.

Backchecking: “WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU’RE GOING?”

Where it happens: While skating back toward your own goal, often in sheer panic.

When it happens: Right after your team loses the puck and the other team is flying toward your net like a stampede of angry ducks.

You’re chasing them down yelling internally: “Please don’t score, please don’t score, PLEASE—”

Goal: Catch up to your man. Steal the puck. Distract them enough that your goalie can prepare emotionally.

It’s like: You just realized your dog got out and is sprinting toward traffic, so now you’re full Usain Bolt mode trying to catch them.

 

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