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an attacking player (almost always a defenceman or centre) shoots the puck from the neutral zone into either corner behind the opposing net in hopes that the onrushing wingers can beat the opposing defenders to it and gain control. The centre's role here is to provide support for the wingers if they become engaged in a puck battle, and give the battling winger an option to try to move the puck to, or to try to scoop up loose pucks as they become available. Once the puck is freed the offence can then set up as normal.
232:. This position is especially important to a centre on some powerplay sets. Again it gives the centre a clear view of the ice surface and many different options. From here he may choose to pass back to a defenceman on the point, go down the boards to a winger behind the net, or drive the net itself hoping to draw defenders to him. The disadvantage of this position is that it is easily defended, and the centre generally does not have much time to survey the ice looking for an open teammate.
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break out alongside the puck carrying winger. The winger, if undefended, may skate the puck out himself/herself, in which case the centre provides a passing option in the neutral zone, or if the winger is pressured, can make the break-out pass to the centre moving up the ice. Here the centre can carry the puck out of the zone on their own, or look for the weak side winger coming across centre ice.
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Many centres like this area because of its openness. Possessing the puck here gives the centre many different options, as well as a central position in the offensive play. From here the player can choose to shoot the puck on net, attempt to draw defenders away from the net by skating, or find open players closer to the goal cage.
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other forwards who venture into the slot as well. Like defencemen, centres are often relied upon to block long-distance shots while patrolling the slot. Because there are no boards in the slot area, it is difficult to play physically on opposing forwards so centres must be good at using their sticks to defend via
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that engage opposing puck carriers in puck battles on the boards by giving the primary defender (normally a defenceman in the defensive zone) an outlet to move the puck to if he/she is able to win the puck from the offensive player, though the centre does on occasion participate in these puck battles if they must.
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Bigger, heavier, and stronger centres may prefer to use strength tactics such as tying up the opposing centre and winning the puck with his feet or overpowering the opponent by ripping the puck away using sheer strength. Smaller, quicker centres may employ swiftness tactics such as trying to contact
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Faceoff techniques and preferences vary widely from player to player depending on that player's skill at taking faceoffs, speed, strength, and agility. Although faceoff techniques differ greatly, it is almost universal now that the centre reverses his lower hand and takes the faceoff on his backhand
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The penalty killing unit normally consists of two forwards and two defencemen. The centre's role does not differ appreciably from any other forward, though they are almost always included on the penalty killing unit for the purpose of taking the faceoff. Depending on what formation the penalty kill
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The centre's first and foremost responsibility is defending the slot area from opposing forwards. This is the most difficult area of the ice to defend because of its proximity to the net and its being situated in the middle of the ice. The centre is not only responsible for the opposing centre, but
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Here the centre will mainly focus on skating and shadowing opposing puck carriers to try to force turnovers. They are responsible for the middle of the ice, and try to cut off long passing lanes to attacking players. If the defending team successfully does force a turnover, the centre is most often
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The matter of bringing the puck in the zone generally is accomplished in two ways. The first involves the team's best puck carrier (usually the centre) using their speed and quickness to cross the blue line with the puck and set up the offence. The second is colloquially called a "dump in", in which
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Centres are required to cover a good portion of the ice in all three zones. Where the centre tends to play in the offensive zone is usually a matter of coaching and personal preference. Centres are responsible for keeping the flow of the game moving, and generally handle, and pass the puck more than
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The perimeter is an advantageous position for the defence, the boards act as an extra defender and the defending team often will try to enclose a puck carrier between the boards and two or more defenders to force turnovers. The centre's general responsibility is to provide support to other players
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Additionally, without the puck, the centre can choose to occupy this space looking for deflections of long shots or rebounds. Aside from some larger centres who focus on scoring off rebounds, centres rarely set up directly in front of the net itself because in case of a turnover, it is much harder
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When a centre's winger is being attacked along the boards, the centre can take position behind the net to receive the pressured winger's pass. Behind the net is a natural place for some centres to play. It is a very difficult position to defend because it forces the opposing defensemen to leave the
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Faceoffs are critical to a team's success on offence or defence. To this end, centres that may be deficient in other areas, especially offensively, can still have value to a team if they are excellent faceoff takers. Faceoffs are often used as a measure of defensive effectiveness, and good faceoff
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When playing the trap, the centre typically spearheads the defence by placing himself/herself in the middle of the ice between the red line and blue line in defensive position. This forces the puck carrier to either side board where the centre and puck side winger close him in, "trapping" him/her
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The centre's role in the
Neutral zone on the attacking side if he/she possesses the puck, is to bring the puck into the offensive zone by carrying or dumping the puck in. Although any player may carry the puck into the zone, centres are most often counted on because of their speed, quickness, and
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When the puck is turned over by the offensive team, the defence must be able to exit the zone fluidly. In a basic fundamental break-out, the puck is controlled by the defence behind the net who then passes up the boards to a forward. The centre curls at the strong side faceoff dot and begins to
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Many centres use their mobility and freedom to take advantage of the slot area, the area in between the faceoff dots, about 5 to 15 feet from the goal. The slot area is notorious goal-scoring territory because of its proximity to the net and the difficulty the opposing team has in defending it.
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Because the range of offensive styles teams like to use, exactly how centres are used in the offensive zone is as varied as the players themselves. Generally the centre's role on offence is to move the offence through himself, setting up other players, and providing support for puck battles. They
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Powerplay sets are also quite varied, so the centre's role can range a lot. Many times though the centre will choose to operate in the slot area or on the half boards. The half board position here is made easier to play because the centre has more time to look over the ice surface, and is not
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A quick break is sometimes used to take advantage of the opponent's sloppy transition game. In this set, the defenceman directly passes to the centre curling at the faceoff dot. The centre can then carry the puck out himself/herself or try to pass to the streaking weakside winger up the ice.
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strategy, the centre's role is typically to shadow the puck carrier or provide token pressure in the opposing team's zone to force them to try to pass the puck up ice into the lock. This is a much older strategy and is less commonly employed at elite levels, however it was most recently used
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quickly from deep in the opposing zone. Generally, centres are expected to be gifted passers more so than goal scorers, although there are exceptions - typically larger centres who position themselves directly in front of the net in order to score off rebounds. They are also expected to have
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Unlike their offensive responsibilities, the centre's defensive responsibilities are relatively straightforward. Again the centre must be able to use their skating ability to cover vast portions of the ice, and is responsible for the greatest percentage of ice in their own zone than of any
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ability to stickhandle. If another player possesses the puck attacking into the zone, the centre's job is to provide support if the puck carrier needs to pass to another player across the blue line. Once the zone has been gained the offence may proceed to set up as they see fit.
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any other position player. Because of this, most good centres tend to score significantly more assists than goals because the play goes through them as they try to find open teammates. His or her responsibilities in the zone are analogous to the classic
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is the middle of the ice, away from the sideboards. Centres have more flexibility in their positioning and therefore often end up covering more ice surface than any other player. Centres are ideally strong, fast skaters who are able to
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front of the net. It also gives the centre a clear view of the ice and most importantly the slot area. From here the centre has clear passing lanes and minimizes the distance and difficulty of passes to nearly any part of the slot.
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uses, the centre along with the other forward on the ice will play high side defence, trying to cut off passing lanes in the slot. Secondarily, they pressure offensive players on the boards if they do not have clear possession.
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between the two defending players and the boards. Here the attacking player has very few options, and generally must retreat to a defenceman, whereupon the defending team can reset the trap. This tactic was pioneered by the
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exceptional "ice vision", Hockey IQ, intelligence, and creativity. They also generally are the most defensively-oriented forwards on the ice, as they are expected to play the role of the third player in defense, after the
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the puck before his opponent has a chance to get his stick in the dot, or the slide technique where he allows his opponent access to the dot easily so he can slide his stick underneath and pull the puck back out.
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pressured by the defenders as much. Again the centre's role is to move the offence through himself/herself looking for passing lanes to open players or roving the slot area looking for deflections and rebounds.
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Many different strategies have been devised to defend the neutral zone. Often successfully defending the neutral zone leads to fewer opportunities for the opposing team to have offensive possessions.
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roam around most areas of the ice in the zone and have a lot of freedom in decision making. They are also expected to constantly be in motion causing defenders to have a hard time tracking them.
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On dump ins, the centre's role is to provide support to the wingers as they battle for possession in the corners, and hunt for loose pucks.
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responsible for turning the direction of play around or receiving the first pass from a winger who has successfully forced a turnover.
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pass by the opposing team. The centre is expected to play the deepest in the offensive zone but also the first of the forwards to
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for their team. Centres employ many different tactics to win faceoffs that take advantage their strength or swiftness.
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in the late 1990s and has been used extensively in the NHL and all levels of hockey since.
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in order to gain more strength when pulling the puck.
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242:Power play (sporting term) § Ice hockey
395:It is generally the centre's job to handle
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130:played his entire NHL career as a centre.
109:Learn how and when to remove this message
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220:to get back in position defensively.
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168:. Centres usually play as part of a
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423:The Complete Hockey Dictionary
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183:number 10 playmaker in soccer
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302:extensively by the 2006
58:"Centre" ice hockey
340:Defending the perimeter
323:Defending the slot area
1457:Ice hockey terminology
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1093:Gordie Howe hat trick
1073:Ceremonial first puck
515:Goaltending equipment
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1452:Ice hockey positions
43:improve this article
425:. Fenn Publishing.
362:On the penalty kill
314:Defensive zone play
304:Carolina Hurricanes
297:When employing the
176:Offensive zone play
16:Ice hockey position
1447:Ice hockey centres
1250:In popular culture
1189:Arenas by capacity
293:The left wing lock
224:On the half boards
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128:Wayne Gretzky
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60: –
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54:Find sources:
48:
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38:
37:
32:This article
30:
26:
21:
20:
1348:
1235:Broadcasting
1219:Shot quality
1143:Shot on goal
1002:Dump'n'Chase
824:Short-handed
809:Penalty shot
724:Awarded goal
633:
422:
409:
405:
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365:
356:
352:
343:
334:sweep checks
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156:zone of play
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99:January 2008
96:
86:
79:
72:
65:
53:
41:Please help
36:verification
33:
1389:Other roles
1168:Towel Power
1163:Three stars
1051:Terminology
880:Saucer pass
592:Skate guard
330:poke checks
308:Stanley Cup
230:half boards
211:In the slot
1441:Categories
1421:Head coach
1344:Defenceman
1339:Goaltender
1177:Statistics
1123:Puck bunny
1103:Hockeytown
961:Underwater
936:Rink bandy
899:Variations
890:Wrist shot
629:Defenceman
624:Goaltender
510:Cooperalls
471:Ice hockey
415:References
319:position.
240:See also:
193:Zone entry
166:defencemen
148:ice hockey
69:newspapers
1426:Officials
1332:Positions
1245:Nicknames
1184:Analytics
1148:Skatemill
1083:Five-hole
1012:Forecheck
987:Breakaway
982:Backcheck
977:Analytics
906:Broomball
885:Snap shot
870:One timer
844:Tuck rule
789:Officials
734:Breakaway
610:Positions
502:Equipment
381:backcheck
377:break-out
268:Defending
256:Attacking
161:backcheck
1396:Enforcer
1273:Category
1255:Violence
1240:Fighting
1153:Slapshot
992:Checking
970:Strategy
839:Tripping
819:Roughing
799:Overtime
759:Face-off
744:Clipping
739:Charging
729:Boarding
682:Enforcer
566:Uniform
562:T-Blades
397:faceoffs
391:Faceoffs
1416:Captain
1401:Grinder
1354:Forward
1283:Commons
1209:Fenwick
1027:Loafing
997:Cycling
951:Special
916:Fantasy
911:College
804:Penalty
794:Offside
779:Hooking
769:Halifax
687:Grinder
672:Captain
649:Two-way
639:Forward
530:Trapper
520:Blocker
487:Leagues
482:History
152:forward
83:scholar
1371:Winger
1349:Centre
1068:Diving
1063:Assist
1037:Screen
946:Sledge
941:Shinny
931:Power
853:Skills
656:Winger
634:Centre
575:Jersey
570:Helmet
429:
140:center
136:centre
85:
78:
71:
64:
56:
1411:Rover
1214:Point
1204:Films
1118:Point
956:Table
921:Minor
784:Icing
719:Arena
711:Rules
697:Rover
677:Coach
665:Other
644:Power
585:Socks
580:Pants
552:Stick
547:Skate
537:Glove
492:Teams
150:is a
146:) in
90:JSTOR
76:books
1406:Pest
1158:Stop
1128:Save
1022:Line
926:Pond
875:Pass
865:Deke
834:Slot
829:Shot
814:Rink
764:Goal
692:Pest
617:Main
557:Tape
542:Puck
525:Mask
427:ISBN
387:").
170:line
138:(or
134:The
62:news
142:in
45:by
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332:,
310:.
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463:e
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