With a few new additions to the rule book over the past couple of decades and a reduction in fighting, an average NHL game definitely takes less time to play than it did back in the 1970’s.
Today’s NHL games take approximately two-and-a-half hours to complete and about 10 minutes longer if overtime or a shootout are needed. There are many factors that can impact how long and NHL game lasts.
I decided that a detailed guide was needed for anyone wondering how long an NHL game takes and what causes a game to end up being longer. First I go over how long periods are, intermissions, and extra time. Then you can see 11 possible causes for a longer game of hockey.
How Long is an NHL Game in Real Time?
You can expect to spend approximately two-and-a-half hours (150 minutes) watching a 60-minute NHL game from the opening faceoff to the final buzzer. This includes the two intermissions and all of the stops and starts during the contest and television breaks.
If sudden-death overtime is needed you’ll need to add on about another seven or eight minutes and a shootout would extend the viewing time by approximately another five minutes. Therefore, an NHL game that needs to be decided by a shootout will take about 2 hours and 45 minutes to complete.
What Time of Day Do NHL Games Typically Start?
Most games are scheduled to begin at 7 or 7:30 pm on weeknights with the odd 8 pm and 8:30 pm starts thrown in. There are often afternoon matinee games on weekends and holidays and these could start anytime from as early as 12 noon until 5 pm.
Be aware that the puck typically drops about 7 to 15 minutes after the scheduled start time to accommodate for the national anthems and any type of pre-game ceremony.
How Early Can You Enter an Arena Before the Game?
Most NHL arenas allow fans to enter the building from one to two hours before the game starts to allow them to see the warmups. This will depend on the individual rink however and the type of ticket you have.
Many rinks open the doors at least two hours early for fans with premium or club seats which often include unlimited drinks and food in the price. Fans with these types of tickets are typically allowed to remain in the rink for about an hour after the final buzzer as well. To be certain of the entering times it’s a good idea to contact the arena you’re going to be visiting.
How Long is an NHL Warm-Up?
Pre-game warm-ups start about 30 minutes before the scheduled starting time of the game, which ends up being almost 40 minutes to puck drop. An NHL pre-game warm-up is 16 minutes long, but players may get off the ice surface earlier.
After the warm-up the Zamboni then hits the ice to resurface it, this happens before the national anthem.
How Long is an NHL Period?
Each NHL period consists of 20 minutes of stop time. This means the playing clock is stopped with each whistle for a guaranteed minimum of 60 minutes of action in each contest. Regular-season sudden-death overtime is scheduled for five minutes of stop time while sudden-death playoff overtime periods are 20-minutes of stop time.
How Many Periods are in an NHL Game?
There are three periods in an NHL game. If a regular-season contest ends in a tie, fans will be treated to a maximum of five minutes of three-on-three overtime.
If the game is still level after the overtime period it’s settled with a three-player (on each team) penalty-shot shootout. In the playoffs there is an unlimited number of five-on-five player overtime periods as the teams keep playing until one of them scores a winning goal.
How Long are NHL Intermissions? (Time Between Periods)
As of the 2022/23 NHL season, each intermission is timed at 18 minutes in length. This allows time for the two Zamboni’s to resurface the ice and also leaves time for teams to hold short children’s games, events or contests etc between periods.
How Long Does Overtime Take?
Regular-season NHL three-on-three overtime, which was introduced in 2015/16, is currently scheduled for five minutes. If the entire five minutes are needed it usually takes about seven minutes in real time.
Overtime During Regular Season vs Overtime in Playoffs
In the playoffs, tied games go to sudden-death five-on-five player overtime with each period scheduled for 20 minutes. There is also an 18-minute intermission between periods for resurfacing the ice. The average length of an NHL playoff overtime period is approximately 13 minutes, factoring in as soon as a goal is scored the game ends.
Of course, the game could be decided in the first few seconds of overtime or several periods may be needed for somebody to net the winning goal.
How Long Does a Shootout Take?
A shootout takes about five minutes of real time to complete. The modern era, three-round shootout was introduced by the NHL in 2005/06. A regular shootout can be decided in fewer than three shots per team if one of the teams happens to score on its first two shots and the opponents fail to score on their first two attempts.
As of March, 2023, the longest shootout in NHL history took place on December 16th, 2022 when Nick Bjugstad of the Florida Panthers scored the winning goal in the 20th round to give his team a 2-1 win over the Washington Capitals.
Read our related post on NHL Shootout Rules here.
How Long Are Hockey Timeouts? (And How Many?)
Each NHL team is allowed one 30-second time-out during a game and it can only be taken after a normal stoppage of play. Only one team may take a time-out during a stoppage. Most coaches ask for a time-out just before an official drops the puck for a faceoff as a tactic to get a longer rest for his players.
This makes the actual time-out quite a bit longer than 30 seconds especially between when the original stoppage was whistled to the time the puck is stopped to restart the game.
What Else Can Cause a Hockey Game to Be Longer?
Injuries
Hockey players are a tough bunch and in general the play isn’t whistled dead when one of them goes down with an injury. However there are times when the game will have to be halted due to a serious injury to a player or official.
Coach’s Challenges
A game can be slowed down due to coach’s challenges which are allowed for possible missed offside and goaltender interference calls after a goal has been scored. Each coach is allowed an unlimited number of challenges during a game and this takes time as the officials need to review the contested play on a video screen and contact the NHL Situation room in Toronto.
VIDEO: Maple Leafs’ Mike Babcock pulls off 1st successful coach’s challenge in NHL history! http://t.co/bgsyu6FyIr pic.twitter.com/TJDKSLqVNL
— theScore (@theScore) October 8, 2015
The league has tried to cut down on these challenges by issuing a two-minute minor penalty to a team if its challenge fails. If the team is unsuccessful two or more times during the same game then each challenge after the first one will result in a double-minor penalty.
TV Time-Outs
All NHL games have three TV time-outs per period for commercials and these are each two-minutes long. That’s a total of 18 minutes just for TV commercials during a game and these extend the length of games.
Fights
Line brawls and fights aren’t as common in today’s games as they used to be but they still occur from time to time and these altercations can extend the length of a game.
Lots of Whistles/Stoppages of Play
Each game is unpredictable when it comes to stoppages. Some games are fast-paced and wide open and could see very few whistles while other games may be the complete opposite with an extraordinary amount of stoppages due to whistles.
Ice Issues
Games can be extended in length if the on-ice officials or arena staff need to make repairs to a poor ice surface. The ice sometimes becomes chipped in a certain area and may need to be scraped or filled in with snow from the playing surface and water.
Zamboni Malfunctions
It rarely happens, but sometimes the Zamboni which resurfaces the ice may break down. Each team uses two Zamboni’s to resurface the ice between periods but a game may be extended if one of both of them should happen to malfunction.
Net Damages
Hockey netting is quire durable but once in a while it may rip. If this happens, an official or rink employee will need to fix any holes in the netting. On rare occasions there could also be a problem with the pegs that hold the nets in place on the ice.
Doors/Gates Malfunctions
The doors to the player’s benches and penalty boxes sometimes malfunction and this takes time to repair.
Broken Glass
On this day in 2008, @27MilanLucic put Mike Van Ryn through the glass at TD Garden #Hockey365 # pic.twitter.com/LxSppYYLMP
— Mike Commito (@mikecommito) October 23, 2020
While the plexiglass panes which are placed around the rink just above the boards are very strong, they can occasionally shatter or be knocked out of place due to a heavy impact. When this happens, rink workers are called out to replace the glass or put it back into place.
I was playing a game in Clarenville Newfoundland when I was in grade 11. I went to body check a player and when we collided, he fell backwards and my skate went up in the air and hit the glass behind us. The glass shattered everywhere and the game was delayed for 1 hours, not fun!
Fan Emergencies
Thankfully, emergencies in the stands are rare but they do occur from time to time. This could include a medical emergency such as a heart attack etc, or a fan could be struck by a puck or fall down the stairs. In addition, rival fans may sometimes misbehave and fights in the stands need to be broken up.
Event Nights
Events at hockey games can delay the games total time. The longest event that comes to my mind is the teddy toss event. When I played Jr and senior hockey we had these once a year. The fans would throw a stuffed toys (teddy bears) on the ice and they would be gathered up by players and volunteers placing them in buckets.
Teddy Bear Toss cellies >>>>> pic.twitter.com/sJhilHr3Vl
— Portland Winterhawks (@pdxwinterhawks) December 11, 2022
These toys were donated to children’s hospitals and children in need. It was a fun event that’s for sure.
Another event night that comes to mind is Chuck-a-puck. This event is when fans pay for orange foam pucks (not real ones anymore) and try to throw it closest to the center faceoff dot. Whoever wins will win the grand prize.
Hat Tricks
A hat trick is not extremely common but you may see one at your next NHL game. This means one player scores 3 goals during the game, this means fans will start throwing hats on the ice. Depending on the game, the scorer, and the fans, it can take a long time to pick all the hats off the ice.
Hockey Game Start and End Times Chart:
| Start of Hockey Game | End of Hockey Game Range |
|---|---|
| 1:00 PM | 3:30 PM – 4:00 PM |
| 1:30 PM | 4:00 PM – 4:30 PM |
| 2:00 PM | 4:30 PM – 5:00 PM |
| 2:30 PM | 5:00 PM – 5:30 PM |
| 3:00 PM | 5:30 PM – 6:00 PM |
| 3:30 PM | 6:00 PM – 6:30 PM |
| 4:00 PM | 6:30 PM – 7:00 PM |
| 4:30 PM | 7:00 PM – 7:30 PM |
| 5:00 PM | 7:30 PM – 8:00 PM |
| 5:30 PM | 8:00 PM – 8:30 PM |
| 6:00 PM | 8:30 PM – 9:00 PM |
| 6:30 PM | 9:00 PM – 9:30 PM |
| 7:00 PM | 9:30 PM – 10:00 PM |
| 7:30 PM | 10:00 PM – 10:30 PM |
| 8:00 PM | 10:30 PM – 11:00 PM |
Hockey Game Length FAQs
How Long Do Hockey Games Last on TV?
Most television broadcasters schedule two-and-a-half hour time slots for each NHL game. However, considering that most games don’t get underway until 10 to 15 minutes after the scheduled time and they could also need overtime or a shootout to decide it, this time frame usually isn’t long enough.
How Long is an Olympic Hockey Game?
Like the NHL, Olympic hockey games consist of three 20-minute periods of stop time with two intermissions and take about two-and-a-half hours to complete on average. The IIHF (International Ice Hockey Federation) overlooks Olympic hockey and their intermissions are currently 15 minutes long.
The following rules were used at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing, China:
If a round-robin game ends in a tie it’s decided by a five-minute sudden-death, three-on-three overtime period following a three-minute intermission and then a five-round penalty-shot shootout if there’s no winner.
In the qualification playoff, quarterfinal and semifinals games, a tied game will go to a 10-minute sudden-death, three-on-three overtime period following a three-minute intermission.
The game is decided by a shootout if there’s no winner. When it comes to Olympic gold and bronze medal games, if they’re tied after 60 minutes there will be a 15-minute intermission and then 20-minute sudden-death overtime periods of three-on-three until a goal is scored with a 15-minute intermission between each period.
What’s the Longest NHL Hockey Game of All Time?
The longest playoff overtime in NHL history came in 1936 when the Montreal Maroons and Detroit Red Wings battled it out in a Stanley Cup semifinal showdown. The contest ended when Detroit’s Mud Bruneteau notched the winner in the sixth extra period after 116 minutes and 30 seconds of overtime hockey. It took 176 and a half minutes of stop-time hockey for the Red Wings to skate off with the 1-0 victory.
The longest overtime of the NHL’s modern era took place in 2000 when the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins went into the fifth period of overtime. Keith Primeau scored the winner for the Flyers in a 2-1 win after 92 minutes and one second of overtime action. It took more than seven hours to play the game which featured just over 152 minutes of stop-time hockey, which was equal to two-and-a-half games.
What’s the Shortest NHL Overtime Hockey Game of All Time?
The fastest a regular-season overtime game has ended as of March, 2023 has been six seconds and has been achieved on six different occasions. The fastest playoff overtime game was just nine seconds when Brian Skrudland scored for the Montreal Canadiens for a 3-2 win over the Calgary Flames in the second game of the 1985/1986 Stanley Cup Final.
How Long are Major Junior Hockey Games?
The length of major junior hockey games are just a little quicker to watch than an NHL game as there may not always be TV time-outs. Most major junior leagues will also play a three-on-three, five-minute sudden-death overtime period after a tie game and then decide things by a three-round shootout if there’s no winner.
Final Thoughts
In the old days, hockey games used to be 60 minutes long but were divided into two 30-minute halves. But as the ice conditions quickly got worse with this system the three 20-minute period game was introduced in the pro ranks in 1910/11. This extended the length of games but there were no TV time-outs back then so contests were decided a little bit quicker.
The length of games dragged out in the 1970’s when the likes of the Broad Street Bullies (Philadelphia Flyers) and the Big Bad Bruins (Boston Bruins) were going around trying to intimidate opponents with fisticuffs and extreme physical play. This led to fights, brawls and what have you and games could take three hours to play.
Today’s contests are generally fast paced and rarely reach the three-hour mark even if overtime and a shootout is needed. The NHL has specifically tried to speed up proceedings over the years by removing the centre-ice red line for offside purposes and trying out the hurry-up faceoff rule. But these have been offset with time-outs and coach’s challenges.
Still, NHL games are usually over in two-and-a-half hours but it’s hard to predict what the future may bring as new rules which speed games up or slow them down are introduced on a regular basis.
Jamie is the founder of Hockey Response and he is the chief writer/ lead editor. Jamie has been playing hockey for over 20 years. He was the defenseman of the year in NL and has played Jr A level hockey. Jamie has coached several kids hockey camps and he was the assistant coach of the Western Kings.
