Hockey penalties: 30 NHL calls with rule numbers

Hockey penalties run from a 2 minute minor to a match penalty. A major lasts 5 minutes. A third major in one game gets the player ejected (Rule 20.4).

NHL Rules 16 to 23 set the lengths. This guide lists 30 calls with their rule numbers. The finder below picks the penalty for the foul you saw.

What are the types of hockey penalties?

The NHL rulebook gives each of eight types of hockey penalties its own rule. A ninth outcome, the awarded goal, sits in Rule 25.

This table lists each type with its time and rule number.

Type	On the clock	Rule
Minor	2 minutes	16
Bench minor	2 minutes	17
Double minor	4 minutes	18
Major	5 minutes	20
Misconduct	10 minutes	22
Game misconduct	Out for the game	23
Match	5 minutes. Out for the game	21
Penalty shot	One shot	24

Minor and bench minor

A minor sends a player off for 2 minutes (Rule 16.1). His team plays a skater short. A power play goal ends the minor early (16.2).

A bench minor also lasts 2 minutes. The coach picks any skater except the goalkeeper (17.1). He names him through the playing captain.

Double minor

A double minor lasts 4 minutes (Rule 18.1). A power play goal ends the first 2 minutes. The second 2 then begin (18.2, 16.2).

Five fouls carry a double minor in the 2026 to 27 book:

• A butt ending attempt (58.2)
• A head butting attempt (47.2)
• High sticking that injures (60.3)
• Spearing without contact (62.2)
• Delay of game for a failed challenge after an earlier one failed (38.8)

A team’s first failed challenge costs a minor. The book has no triple minor.

Major

A major lasts 5 minutes (Rule 20.1). No substitute may play, and a goal does not end it (20.2).

A third major in one game adds an automatic game misconduct (20.4). Referees review every major except fighting (20.6).

Fighting has its own major in Rule 46.14. Our guide to fighting in hockey covers the add ons. A fight is one part of the Gordie Howe hat trick.

Misconduct and game misconduct

A misconduct lasts 10 minutes. The player stays in the box until the first stoppage after the 10 minutes (22.1).

A substitute plays at once, so the team is not short (22.1, 22.3). A minor, major or match on top of the misconduct makes it short.

A game misconduct ends the player’s night, and a substitute plays at once. The league records 10 minutes (23.1).

Match penalty

A match penalty fits a player who tries to injure an opponent (Rule 21.1). It costs 5 minutes on the clock. The league records 15 minutes (21.2).

That total is 5 minutes on the clock plus 10 for the removal. The player goes to the dressing room at once (21.1). He is suspended until the Commissioner rules (21.2).

A teammate serves the 5 minutes. A substitute may replace the ejected player after those 5 minutes (21.2). Referees review every match penalty (21.5).

Penalty shot and awarded goal

A penalty shot restores a lost scoring chance (Rule 24). The puck starts on the center face off spot (24.2). A foul from behind earns a shot only when four things are true (24.8):

• The foul came over the puck carrier’s own blue line, in the neutral or attacking zone.
• It came from behind.
• He had control, or clearly would have, and lost a reasonable chance to score.
• No opponent stood between him and the goalkeeper.

Rule 25.2 gives a goal, not a shot, for a displaced goal post. The defender or goalkeeper moves it on a clear scoring chance.

Which hockey penalties end on a goal?

A goal on the power play ends some penalties and leaves others running. This list shows how each type works:

• Minor and bench minor: a power play goal ends it (16.2, 17.2).
• Double minor: a goal ends the first 2 minutes, then the second 2 begin (18.2).
• Major: a goal does not end it (20.2).
• Misconduct alone: the team is not short, so a goal changes nothing (22.3).
• Penalty shot: a goal on the shot ends no penalty (24.6).

Our guide to the power play in hockey covers the skater counts.

If the fouled team scores on the play, the minor is wiped out. Majors and match penalties still stand (15.2). A double minor foul still costs 2 minutes (15.3).

Find the penalty

Pick a foul, say what you saw, and see the penalty, the minutes and the rule number.

30 NHL calls from A to Z

These three tables list 30 calls and the main penalties each can bring. Each table runs from A to Z. Every rule number comes from the 2026 to 27 book.

Physical fouls

This table lists the physical fouls from boarding to throwing equipment.

Call	Main penalties	Rule
Boarding	Minor or major. Match if he meant to injure. A major for a face or head injury adds a game misconduct	41
Charging	Minor or major. Match if he meant to injure. A major for a face or head injury adds a game misconduct	42
Checking from behind	No minor. Major, with a game misconduct every time. Match if he meant to injure	43
Clipping	Minor. Major if an injury occurs, with a game misconduct. Match	44
Elbowing	Minor. Major at the referee’s choice. A major is required for a face or head injury, and it adds a game misconduct. Match	45
Fighting	Major for fighting (46.14). Match for taped hands that cut or injure (46.15)	46
Head butting	Double minor for an attempt. Major, with a game misconduct. Match if it injures	47
Illegal check to the head	Minor. No major and no game misconduct. Match if the referee decides he meant to injure	48
Kicking	Match penalty	49
Kneeing	Minor. Major, with a game misconduct. Match	50
Roughing	Minor. Penalty shot for a foul from behind on a breakaway	51
Slew footing	Match penalty. The book has no minor for it	52
Throwing equipment	Minor. Bench minor from a bench. Penalty shot if thrown at the puck or carrier in the defending zone	53

Stick and holding fouls

This table lists the fouls with a stick or with the hands.

Call	Main penalties	Rule
Butt ending	Double minor for an attempt. Major, with a game misconduct. Match if it injures	58
Cross checking	Minor. Major, with a game misconduct. Match. Penalty shot on a breakaway	59
High sticking	Minor above the shoulders. Double minor when it injures. Match. Penalty shot on a breakaway	60
Holding	Minor. Penalty shot for a foul from behind on a breakaway	54
Hooking	Minor. Major if it injures, with a game misconduct. Penalty shot on a breakaway	55
Interference	Minor. Bench minor for an unnamed player or a coach. Major at the referee’s choice, with a game misconduct if it injures	56
Slashing	Minor. Major, with a game misconduct. Match. Penalty shot on a breakaway	61
Spearing	Double minor with no contact. Major, with a game misconduct. Match if it injures	62
Tripping	Minor. Penalty shot on a breakaway. Awarded goal in some cases	57

Other calls

This table lists the calls that are not fouls on a player.

Call	Main penalties	Rule
Abuse of officials	Minor for disputing a ruling. Bench minor for a coach. Misconduct for persisting. Game misconduct after that	39
Delay of game	Minor for sending the puck out of play. Bench minor for extra changes after a warning. Penalty shot or awarded goal when the goal post is displaced	63
Diving	Minor. A goalkeeper can get it for faking contact	64
Handling the puck	Minor for closing a hand on the puck. Penalty shot if a defender other than the goalkeeper falls on it in the crease	67
Interference on the goalkeeper	Minor or major, as the referee decides	69
Leaving the bench	Bench minor for leaving without an altercation. Game misconduct for the first or second player off the bench in an altercation	70
Too many men	Bench minor. A goal scored by that team before the whistle is disallowed	74
Unsportsmanlike conduct	Minor. Misconduct for persisting. Game misconduct for persisting after a misconduct	75

What happens when hockey penalties overlap?

Rules 15, 19 and 26 cover overlaps and delays.

Coincidental penalties

Players from both teams can get penalties of equal length at the same stoppage. Each player sits until the first stoppage after his penalty ends (19.1).

Each team takes one minor at the same stoppage, and no other penalty is running. Nobody is replaced, so both teams play four skaters against four. A substitute can replace each player when a team is already short (19.1).

The last five minutes

The last five minutes of regulation, and all of overtime, work differently. A minor and a major come at the same stoppage, one against each team. That leaves a 3 minute gap.

A double minor against a major leaves a 1 minute gap. The team that took the major puts a player in the box for the gap. It counts as a major (19.4).

Delayed penalties and a third player

A delayed penalty is called when the team without the puck commits a foul. The referee raises an arm. The whistle blows when the penalized team gains control of the puck (15.1).

A third penalized player waits while two teammates serve time. His time starts when one of them finishes. A substitute plays for him, so the team keeps three skaters (26.1).

Goalie penalties

A goalkeeper does not go to the box. A teammate who was on the ice serves his minor (27.1). The coach picks that teammate through the captain.

Three majors in one game remove a goalkeeper (27.2).

What do the referee signals show?

Rule 29 describes the signals. Three are worth knowing:

• Delayed penalty: the non whistle arm straight up (29.8)
• Penalty shot: the non whistle arm pointing to the center face off spot (29.26)
• Misconduct: both hands on the hips (29.25)

Calls with no signal

Five calls have no signal in the NHL book: head butting (29.14), kicking (29.22), match penalty (29.24), throwing equipment (29.30) and too many men (29.32).

How do other rulebooks differ?

The IIHF uses the same lengths for minors, double minors, majors and misconducts. It differs on ejections and match penalties.

This table sets the NHL beside the IIHF.

Topic	NHL 2026 to 27	IIHF 2026/27
Automatic game misconduct from majors	Third major (20.4)	Second major (20.4)
Game misconduct in the records	10 minutes (23.1)	20 minutes (23.1)
Match penalty	Yes (21.1)	None. Rule 21 is Dangerous Actions, a major with a game misconduct (21.1)
Kicking and slew footing	Match penalty (49.3, 52.2)	Major and a game misconduct, at the referee’s choice (49.3, 52.2)
Double minor	4 minutes (18.1)	4 minutes (18.1)

USA Hockey

The USA Hockey penalty summary for 2025 to 29 lists a game misconduct in nine cases. Three of them:

• A second major in one game (Rule 403(b))
• A second misconduct in one game (404(a))
• Four penalties on one player in one game (401(b))

The same summary lists kicking as a match penalty (627(b)).

What changed in the 2026 to 27 rulebook?

Rules 15 to 29 keep every penalty length from the 2025 to 26 book. One row left Table 9, the penalty shot summary.

The old row covered a goal post knocked loose on a breakaway. Rules 25.2 and 63.7 already gave an awarded goal for that case.

Rule 9.8 is new, and it sits outside the penalty rules. Players with zero NHL games, goalkeepers included, must wear cut resistant neck protection.

Penalty box questions

What are the penalties in hockey?

The NHL lists minor, bench minor, double minor, major, misconduct, game misconduct, match and penalty shot. Rules 16 to 18 and 20 to 24 describe them.

What are major penalties in hockey?

A major lasts 5 minutes, and a goal does not end it (Rules 20.1, 20.2). A third major in one game adds a game misconduct (20.4).

Can goalies get penalties in hockey?

Yes. A teammate serves the time for a goalkeeper (27.1). Three majors in one game remove him (27.2).

How long are penalties in hockey?

A minor is 2 minutes and a double minor is 4. A major is 5 and a misconduct is 10. A match penalty costs 5 minutes on the clock. Penalty minutes also show on a stat line. What SOG means in hockey reads every column.

Why are some penalties delayed?

The referee waits when the team without the puck commits the foul. The whistle blows when the penalized team gains control of the puck (15.1).

How many penalties before a player is ejected?

A third major in one game ends it (Rule 20.4). A game misconduct or a match penalty ends it at once (23.1, 21.1).

Is diving a penalty in hockey?

Yes. Rule 64.1 gives a minor to a player who dives, embellishes a fall or fakes an injury. A goalkeeper can get one for faking contact (64.1).

Shootout

Take your shot

A skater takes his third major penalty in one NHL game. What does Rule 20.4 add?

A game misconductA penalty shot

Pick one to take your shot.