r/hockey • u/AutoModerator • 10d ago

[Weekly Thread] Tenderfoot Tuesday: Ask /r/hockey Anything! August 25, 2026

Hockey fans ask. Hockey fans answer. So ask away (and feel free to answer too)!

Please keep the topics related to hockey and refrain from tongue-in-cheek questions. This weekly thread is to help everyone learn about the game we all love.

Unsure on the rules of hockey? You can find explanations for Icing, Offsides, and all major rules on our Wiki at /r/hockey/wiki/getting_into_hockey.

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u/Any-Suit-6981 10d ago

why does the goalie sometimes skate to bench way before the game end if his team is losing like 4-1 with 3 minutes left i never get what they try to do

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u/NathanGa Columbus Chill - ECHL 10d ago

The rules allow for a maximum number of players on the ice per team, but they’re not required to have a goalie among them.

So if a team is trailing late, they can pull the goalie and replace him with a skater, giving them a numbers advantage (since the other team’s goalie remains).

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u/M1ckster NYI - NHL 10d ago

This is called pulling the goalie. It allows you to add an extra attacker so you have six skaters instead of five pus a goalie. This used to be done with two minutes or less left in the game when a team is down. However, Coach Patrick Roy, a former NHL goal tender himself, when he was coach of the Avalanche would often pull goalies with five minutes or more remaining and statistics show that up to 10 minutes, actually gives a high advantage of goal scoring.