Road hockey
(Redirected from Street hockey)
Categories: Sports stubs | Hockey
Road hockey, also known as street hockey, dek hockey, or ball hockey is a version of ice hockey (or roller hockey) played without skates. If there is ice on the street it is played with a puck, if there is not it is played with a ball. If a puck is used, for safety the puck usually must not be raised in the air (lifted or reefed).
On ice the game is played in boots; on pavement it may be played in shoes or in inline skates. The goals often are marked by whatever objects are handy (for example, using two pop cans or water bottles as goal posts), although goal nets designed for street hockey are also used.
The word 'car!' is a common one to hear on busier streets which generally means 'stop the game and move the goal nets'. This is often followed by the phrase "game on" once the car has passed.
Although the game is popular throughout Canada and parts of the United States, some residents in Canada have been raising concerns about how road hockey disturbs the neighbourhoods with the noise that the game creates and balls being accidentally flickered into the residents' yards.
A popular alternative to playing hockey on the street is to play in outdoor lacrosse boxes. The lacrosse boxes contain the same asphalt surface as the streets, but offers a more realistic feeling of hockey since the playing area is larger than the average street, plus there are boards that surround the lacrosse box. The only downside to this is the smaller size of the lacrosse nets that are already in place.
There are now a number of organized street hockey/dek hockey/ball hockey leagues throughout the United States and the world, in a number of cities, and for a variety of age groups. These leagues are played both indoors and outdoors, usually on rinks used by roller hockey leagues. Street/dek/ball hockey has a national organization and world championships.
Road Hockey in Pop Culture
In the Disney film D2: The Mighty Ducks the team learns from a gang of street hockey players. Street sports are often known for their tricks, and this film invents the trick knuckle puck.
In Wayne's World the main characters play road hockey.
In Clerks. the main character closes the store to play road hockey on the roof.
Road Hockey Nomenclature
In Central Ontario, long considered a hockey hotbed, the term 'yard sale' refers to the dropping of player equipment and the beginning of a scrap, or fight.
Organized Road/Street/Dek/Ball Hockey Links
Street Hockey Leagues Directory
fr:Street-hockey