ice hockey

Game played on ice between two teams of six, developed in Canada from field hockey or bandy. Players, who wear skates and protective clothing, use a curved stick to advance the puck (a rubber disc) and shoot it at the opponents' goal, a netted cage, guarded by the goaltender, or goalie. The other positions are the left and right defencemen and the left wing, centre, and right wing. The latter three are offensive players. The team with the most goals scored at the end of the three 20-minute periods wins; an overtime period may be played if a game ends in a draw.

History
Ice hockey is believed to have been introduced in Canada in the 1850s, the first game being played in Kingston, Ontario. The first rules were drawn up at McGill University, Montréal. The governing body is the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF), founded in 1908. Ice hockey has been included in the Olympics since 1920 when it was part of the Summer Games programme. Since 1924 it has been part of the Winter Olympics. Women's ice hockey became a medal sport for the first time at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. The Stanley Cup is the game's leading play-off tournament, contested in North America after the season-long National Hockey League. The cup was first awarded in 1893, with the present format starting in 1926.