Want to know how many periods are in hockey? In a hockey game, there are three periods of 20 minutes in the game. It means, the game is 60 minutes and if the score results in a tie, the game will move to sudden death where the team who scores first wins the game.
You might be wondering what adds to the total period and what if something happens during the period. You might have a lot of questions in your mind. But don’t worry, we have got you covered everything about how many periods in a hockey game.
How Long is Each Period in a Hockey Game?
There is a 60-minute total time in a Hockey game, which is distributed into three periods of 20 minutes each. Yes, every period consists of 20 minutes in Hockey. People also know that several stoppages are taken in the game in which the most common is to show commercial advertisements on Television.
After all, Ice Hockey is a popular game and advertisers want to take advantage of it. These advertisements cost a lot of time sometimes. Second, sometimes players get injured during the game and that’s why the action stops for some time. Apart from that, the goalie net also goes loose and may also stop the action till it gets completely fixed.
If there is some foul during the game, the timer gets stopped for the penalty shoot. It also stops the overall action. Fights in Hockey are pretty common and resolving their issues may consume a lot of time. Spectator breaks are also very common where asking for beverages and food is pretty common. The game is around 2.5 hours long and these needs are very basic.
Sometimes, players also take breaks and coaches come to the field to discuss strategies and change the course of the game.
What Happens Between Each Period During a Hockey Match?
After knowing how many periods are in a hockey game, we should also know what happens during each period. In the first break, the players can take some rest and hydrate themselves to go with a refreshing start. However, in the second break, the Zamboni enters the rink during the intermission and will clean the ice.
You may also see some in-game promotions during this period by throwing t-shirts in the crowd from the ice. If the scores are level during the game, the shootout will decide the result of the game. The teams will select three players for the shootout.
These periods are necessary for sports players because they need to show their performance delicately and for that, they need some rest. So, we hope you know how many period in hockey and what things are done during the break.
List of hockey games with the most overtime periods played
Below, we have given the list of hockey games that are played over time to come to the conclusion for getting results.
| Home Team | Opposition | Score | Total Duration |
| Montreal Maroons | Detroit Red Wings | 0-1 | 176:30 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | Boston Bruins | 1-0 | 164:46 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | Philadelphia Flyers | 1-2 | 152:01 |
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Columbus Blue Jackets | 3-2 | 150:27 |
FAQs
Q1. What Happens if a Regular Season Game is Tied After the Third Period?
Ans. If the game is tied after the third period, there will be five minutes of extra time. Still, if there are no results, the game will be taken to the penalty shoot-out.
Q2. How long do hockey games last?
Ans. If you want to know how long are hockey games then in NHL leagues, the game lasts for 60 minutes in three periods of 20 minutes. Every intermission is of around 18 minutes, which may be shorter in other leagues.
Q. How many quarters in hockey?
Ans. There are three quarters in a hockey game and the game runs for a total of 60 minutes. These quarters are mainly for having some rest.
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