An Introduction to Inline Hockey Skating

Inline hockey is a form of roller hockey that is a lot like ice hockey. This team sport is best played on a smooth plastic surface that creates minimal friction for the puck and good traction for inline hockey wheels. The game is played by two teams, consisting of four skaters and one goalie, on a rink divided in half by a center line, with a net at each end of the rink. The game is played in three 15-minute periods. On the competitive level, Inline hockey follows the rules of a national or international governing body. Recreational hockey leagues often make rule changes to accommodate local needs like the size of the rink or timing for periods and penalties.

Inline hockey is a good recreational sport for adults or kids of any age or gender who want a team activity that requires a combination of speed, maneuverability and quick thinking. This roller sport can also be used to train for ice hockey during the off-season. In order to play either recreational, cross-training or professional inline hockey, players need special inline skates and other gear:

• Inline hockey skates
• Elbow pads
• Helmet and protective gear
• Hockey stick
• Hockey puck

Inline hockey is a popular year-round sport at amateur, scholastic, and professional levels in areas that have inline hockey rinks with the correct playing surface. In some countries, the inline hockey is also played on wooden floors in indoor sports halls. Since it can be played on any smooth dry surface, inline hockey can be played for fun in almost any sports center. Inline hockey is known by many names depending on which region of the world it is played, variations on equipment use and the game surface location.

• Inline hockey
• Roller hockey
• Longstick hockey
• Dek hockey
• Road hockey
• Street hockey
• Ball hockey
• Skater hockey

Professional inline hockey has existed in North America since 1993 with teams in the United States and Canada. In the United States, inline hockey is currently organized by the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU), which is part of USA Roller Sports, and USA Hockey Inline.

There are two types of governing bodies for inline hockey. Some belong to the rollers sports community and others belong to the ice hockey community. Inline hockey is governed on the international level by International Ice Hockey Federation, which organizes IIHF Inline Hockey World Championships and the Federation Internationale de Roller Sports which organizes FIRS Inline Hockey World Championships.