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This past week I was lucky enough to receive a request from loyal Illegal Curve reader “Hbomb” to come up with a Hockey Slang Dictionary – jargon that is present during everyday hockey broadcasts. I’m not sure if it had something to do with the Bud Light “Hbomb” was drinking or maybe him having a mild case of Penguins Cup Fever, but nonetheless here is a little guide of slang terms that we came up with that you have likely encountered while watching some puck:
#
4×6 – hockey net
5 hole – area between the goalie’s legs
7 hole – area between the arm of the goalie’s catch glove and his side
B
Biscuit – puck
Blowing a tire – a player losing his edge and falling
Blueliner – defenceman
Bread basket – goalie’s stomach area
Bonnet – helmet
Bucket – helmet
Butterfly – common style of goaltending where goalie’s pads are on ice and chest and shoulders are kept high to cover the majority of the net
C
Cage – hockey net
Can-opener – maneuver whereby defenceman places stick between an opponent’s legs and turns his body; also known as the “Bryan McCabe”
Cherry Picker – player who only remains in the offensive zone without a desire to help out defensively; Jason Spezza
Chucking the knuckles – hockey fight
Chicklets – teeth
Chop – slash
Coast to coast – act where a player rushes the puck up the ice from one end to the other
Cobwebs – what a player tries to rid himself of after being hit
Cue – hockey stick
Cup – portion of jock strap that protects a player; area of expertise of the “Puck Bunny”
D
Dance – hockey fight
Dangle – deke
Dish – pass
Dive – a player intentionally falling to draw a penalty
Dipsy doodle – see “Dangle”
Dump – process by which a player shoots the puck into the corner of the opponent’s offensive zone
Doughnut Boy – retired referee Don Koharski
F
Face wash – technique used by a player after a whistle to anger an opponent
Feed – pass
Flop – see “Dive”; goaltending technique of former NHL goalie Bob Essensa also known as “Flipper”
Freezing the puck – maneuver where goalie holds onto the puck for extended period of time forcing a faceoff in his own zone
G
Give and go – one player passes the puck, then skates and awaits for a return pass
Given ‘er – mantra whereby players give 100% effort
Goon – fighter; can display characteristics of a “Grinder”
Gordie Howe Hattrick – goal, assist, and fight in one game
Gretzky’s Office – area behind the net
Grinder – player of lower quality; “Checker”
H
Hammered – when one player hits other; can be the result of “Given ‘er”
Horseshoe – common warm-up drill in minor hockey
Howitzer – a hard slap shot
I
Iron – goal post
L
Lid – helmet
Lighting the lamp – scoring a goal
Lumber – hockey stick
M
Mitts – hockey gloves
Mugging – act of attacking another player without his knowledge, also known as “Todd Bertuzziing”
Mustard – something placed on a hard shot
N
Natural Hattrick – three goals in a row, in one game
O
On the fly – line change that occurs while play is going on
P
Paddle – goalie stick
Pansification – phrase coined by CBC personality Mike Milbury to describe a soft player; characteristic displayed by Joe Thornton during the playoffs
Pillows – goalie’s pads
Pipe – goal post
Puck Bunny – female choosing to engage in sexual activities exclusively with hockey players
Pulling the goalie – team removing their goalie from the game for an extra attacker on the ice; act a player engages by himself if “Puck Bunnies” are not present
Pylon – player that is of lower skill level; Illegal Curve’s Drew during recreational hockey games
R
Riding the pine – act in which a player remains on bench for prolonged period of time; common with “Goon” and “Grinder”
Rubber – hockey puck
S
Saucer pass – pass that is elevated slightly off of the ice
Shaft – hockey stick
Sin bin – penalty box
Snow angel – when a goalie lies down on the ice on his back with arms and legs spread; usually occurs when the goalie loses his vision of where the puck is located
Snowing the goalie – act of a player intentionally stopping in front of the goalie and thus spraying ice pellets
Splitting the D – hockey move where a player carries the puck in between two defenceman
Spinorama – perfected by Serge and Denis Savard where player spins around with the puck to avoid opponents
Stacking the pads – move where a goalie slides across the ice with both pads placed beside each other horizontally
Standing on your head – game in which a goalie proves to be almost impossible to beat
Stripes – referee
Stone Hands – time period in which a player cannot score; Evgeni Malkin during the 2008 Stanley Cup Playoffs; former Winnipeg Jet Ray Neufeld
T
Tic-tac-toe – three consecutive passes using three different players resulting in a goal
Top shelf – upper portion of the net; area where mamma hides the cookies
Trap – type of neutral zone defensive formation
Trapper – goalie’s glove
Twig – hockey stick
Twine – hockey net
U
Umberalla – type of powerplay formation
W
Waffle – goalie’s blocker
Wheels – player’s ability to skate fast
White Out – act of fans dressing in all white started by Winnipeg Jets fans in the early 90’s; often simulated but never replicated
Weasel – nickname for Commissioner Gary Bettman
Z
Zebra – referee
That’s all that the two of us could think of off of the top of our heads. If anyone has additional terms, add them in the comments section. I’d like to keep this on IllegalCurve.com for future reference – it could come in handy as more and more ‘Canes fans continue to jump on the bandwagon as the team advances (just kidding Carolina readers!).
