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Overtime is a method of determining a winner in an ice hockey game when the score is tied after regulation. The main methods of determining a winner in a tied game are the overtime period (commonly referred to as overtime), the shootout, or a combination of both. If league rules dictate a finite time in which overtime may be played, with no penalty shoot-out to follow, the game's winning team may or may not be necessarily determined.
Overtime periods
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Overtime periods are extra periods beyond the third regulation period during a game, where normal hockey rules apply. Although in the past, full-length overtime periods were played, overtimes today are golden goal (a form of sudden death), meaning that the game ends immediately when a player scores a goal.
North American overtime
From November 21, 1942,[1] when overtime (a non-sudden death extra period of 10 minutes duration) was eliminated due to war time restrictions and continuing through the 1982–83 season, all NHL regular-season games tied after 60 minutes of play ended as ties. On June 23, 1983, the NHL introduced a regular-season sudden death overtime period of five minutes. If the five-minute overtime period ended with no scoring, the game ended as a tie. (The World Hockey Association had used a 10-minute, sudden death regular season overtime period during its seven-year existence.) In the first games to go to overtime, on October 5, 1983, the Minnesota North Stars and Los Angeles Kings skated to a 3–3 tie, and the Detroit Red Wings and Winnipeg Jets tied 6–6. The first regular-season game decided by overtime was on October 8, 1983, as the New York Islanders beat the Washington Capitals 8–7.[2]
In 1987–88 and since 1995, the American Hockey League has awarded teams one point in the standings for an overtime loss (OTL). In 1998, the AHL introduced a rule where teams will play the five-minute overtime period with four skaters and a goaltender, rather than at full strength (five skaters), except in two-man advantage situations. In a two-man advantage situation, the team with the advantage will play with five skaters against three skaters. The rule was popular and adopted by the NHL and ECHL the next season.
Alex Ovechkin has the record for most NHL overtime goals with 25.
In the Stanley Cup playoffs and in all tiebreaker games, overtime periods are played like regulation periods – teams are at full strength (five skaters, barring penalties), there is no shootout, and each overtime period is 20 minutes with full intermissions between overtime periods. The game ends when either team scores a goal.
In many leagues (including the NHL for regular-season games since the 2005–06 season) and in international competitions, a failure to reach a decision in a single overtime may lead to a shootout. Some leagues may eschew overtime periods altogether and end games in shootout should teams be tied at the end of regulation. In the ECHL, the AHL, and the Southern Professional Hockey League, regular season overtime periods are played three on three for one five-minute period, with penalties resulting in the opponents skating one additional player on ice (up to two additional players) for each penalty. If the penalised player returns to the ice, the game becomes 4-on-4 or 5-on-5 until the next stoppage of play, when it becomes 3-on-3. Prior to the 2014–15 season, the AHL set the overtime period at seven minutes,[3] but reverted to the now-standard five-minute period the following year.[4] The idea of using 3-on-3 skaters for the entirety of a five-minute overtime period for a regular season game was adopted by the NHL on June 24, 2015, for use in the 2015–16 NHL season.[5] The ECHL has changed the overtime to seven minutes for the 2019–20 season.
International overtime
In IIHF play, rules for overtime depend on the stage of the competition.[6]
New overtime procedures debuted at the 2019 IIHF World Championship that will be in effect for all IIHF championships, including from the 2022 Winter Olympics hereafter. All overtime periods will be 3-on-3 regardless of round robin or preliminary (five minutes with a three-round shootout), knockout rounds including third place games (ten minutes with a five-round shootout), or the championship (twenty minutes, no shootout). In the championship game only, if that overtime is scoreless, a full intermission will be conducted before the procedure repeats. The overtime ends on whoever scores next. In all cases, teams will change ends.[7]
Shootout
International shootouts
In international competition, shootouts (or more formally, game-winning shots (GWS), and, in some European countries, bullets, or bullits[8][9]), are often used. Each coach selects three skaters from their team to take penalty shots one at a time against the opposing goaltender, with teams alternating shots. Each team gets one shot per round. The winner is the team with more goals after three rounds or the team that amasses an unreachable advantage before then (ex. a team gains a two-goal lead with only one round left). If the shootout is tied after three rounds, tie-breaker rounds are played one at a time (with each team taking one additional shot) until there is a winner.
The IIHF first adopted the game-winning-shot procedure in 1992 when a new playoff procedure in the Winter Olympics and World Championships required a winner for each game. At that time, the shootout was five rounds and only used for knock-out games. In 2006, it was reduced to three rounds and used for all games, eliminating the possibility of tied games at IIHF events. Tie-breaker rounds are still used as needed, and the same or new players can take the tie-break shots, which is also done in reverse order.[10] As of May 2016, all IIHF preliminary round games that are not decided by overtime, are decided by a three-round shootout. However, all playoff & bronze medal games of IIHF top level championships (especially the Olympics) are decided by five round shootouts.[6]
Since 2019, the gold-medal game uses multiple 20-minute overtime periods of 3-on-3, and applies to both genders.
North American shootouts
Most lower minor leagues (ECHL, Central, UHL) have featured a shootout where, at the end of regulation, a shootout similar to the international tournament format is used.
However, in 2000, the ECHL adopted the AHL's four-on-four overtime before the shootout.
For the 2004–05 AHL season, the AHL adopted a five-man shootout, which was first used in that league in 1986–87. The standard five-man shootout is used after four-on-four overtime for all minor leagues in North America. The AHL switched to the NHL formatted three-man shootout for the 2014–15 season.[3]
The Central Collegiate Hockey Association added the shootout as of the 2008–09 season.
Following the lead of minor leagues, in the NHL's first post-lockout season of 2005–06, the league ends exhibition and regular season games still tied after a five-minute-length, three-skaters-per-side overtime period (as of the 2015–16 NHL season onwards) with a shootout. The NHL format is a three-round shootout with tiebreaker rounds as needed. All skaters (except goalies) on a team's roster must shoot before any player can shoot a second time. On December 16, 2014, the longest shootout in NHL history went to 20 rounds before Nick Bjugstad of the Florida Panthers scored to defeat the Washington Capitals; the previous record was 15 rounds.[11]
The shootout is not used in the playoffs for any major North American league. Instead, full 20-minute overtime periods are played until one team scores a goal.
In the National Hockey League and American Hockey League All-Star Skills Competitions, the competition ends in a penalty shootout known as the Breakaway Relay.
Tactics
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Tactics are very important during penalty shots and overtime shootouts for both the shooter and the goalie. Both shooters and goalies commonly consult their teammates and coaches for advice on the opposing player's style of play. Shooters often consider the goalie's strengths and weaknesses (such as a fast glove or stick save), preferred goaltending style (such as butterfly or stand-up) and method of challenging the shooter. Goaltenders often consider the shooter's shot preference, expected angle of attack, a patented move a shooter commonly uses and even handedness of the shooter.
Most shooters attempt to out-deke the goalie in order to create a better scoring chance. Former Detroit Red Wings forward Pavel Datsyuk and New York Rangers forward Martin St. Louis are examples of players who commonly use this tactic. However, it is not uncommon for a shooter to simply shoot for an opening without deking. This is commonly referred to as sniping. This is most commonly performed when a goalie challenges a shooter by giving them an open hole (by keeping a glove, pad or stick out of position or being out of sound goaltending position altogether to tempt the shooter to aim for the given opening). Former NHL forwards Markus Näslund and Brett Hull are two players commonly referred to as snipers. Very rarely a shooter may take a slapshot or wrist shot from the point or top of the slot. This is almost exclusively performed when a shooter either has a high level of confidence in their shot or they attempt to catch the goalie by surprise. Retired player Brian Rolston, Detroit Red Wings winger Todd Bertuzzi, Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Chris Pronger, and Vancouver Canucks winger Daniel Sedin have all used this tactic with success.
List of notable overtime games
The longest overtime game in history was in the Norwegian GET-ligaen. The game ended after 157:14 of overtime in the 8th overtime period.
NHL
This is a list of all National Hockey League (NHL) playoff games that went into at least three overtimes (winning team is bold).