Air Hockey - Rules

Rules

Here are some basic rules as defined by the USAA:

  • A face-off or coin toss decides which player gets the first possession of the puck.
  • The first person to score 7 points by shooting the puck into the opponent's goal wins the game. When the puck breaks the horizontal plane inside the goal, a point is counted, whether or not captured by the electronic scoring device.
  • Once the puck is on a certain player's side of the center line, he/she has 7 seconds to hit the puck back across the center line. Otherwise a foul is committed and the opponent receives possession of the puck.
  • Placing one's mallet on top of the puck, known as topping, is a foul. Here the opponent receives possession of the puck.
  • A player cannot touch or strike the puck with any part of his/her body or with any object other than the mallet. Doing so causes a foul and possession changes hands.
  • If the puck is on a clear path into the goal and the player stops it with anything other than the mallet, this is goaltending. Here the opponent receives a free shot.
  • Hitting the puck when it is on the opposite side of the center line, or crossing the center line completely with one's mallet causes a foul. Here the opponent receives possession of the puck.
  • Red lines in the air hockey should not be crossed by the air hockey mallet. (Catalan Champion Chip)
  • If there is a red line on the goals, it means that you can not keep the air hockey mallet behind the red line. (Catalan Champion Chip)
  • If the puck leaves the table, a foul is called on the player that caused the puck to go out of play due to offensive motion and the opposing player gets possession of the puck. Generally, when a player causes the puck to leave the table with a forward motion of the mallet, even defensively (known as charging), the foul is charged on them. An out of play foul results in the opponent receiving possession of the puck.
  • The players playing can not touch the puck at any time during play, but if one player scores they can put the puck in loser's side.

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