Stay out of the box

Professors always tell students to think outside the box because creativity and individuality keep them from being confined to any one space. In hockey, coaches have the same stance, though differently worded: Stay out of the box!

On the ice, though, the box isn't metaphorical.

"There's never a good time to take a penalty," men's hockey head coach Guy Gadowsky said. "There are ways to be physical within the rules, and that's what you want to do."

Without a doubt, having intimidating players, especially on defense, is a crucial part of the game. Very few teams can survive on speed and skill without size to back them up, and even fewer avoid the "box" entirely.

In youth hockey, being sent to the box is frowned upon. Checking is not even allowed at the squirt level in the United States, and among peewees only the bullying skaters who somehow found puberty before the rest of their age group manage to check with enough force and skill to warrant a whistle. Anything aside from a friendly nudge into the boards is considered downright dirty. Tripping, elbowing and high sticking are banned as well.

Yet as players grow in size — and the speed and skill level increases — a little more physicality starts to become necessary. For defenders to have any chance against the future Teemu Selannes of the world, strength and aggression become as much a part of the game as stick skills and slap shots.

With the growth of players comes more leeway in rule infractions. Gadowsky insists, though, that so-called "enforcers" are not a part of college hockey.

"We don't send someone out to brawl. That doesn't happen," Gadowsky said. "The point is to establish a physical presence, and teams who understand this difference are the most dangerous."

Such teams attempt to hamper opponents in a way that will not draw the referee's whistle. Catching obvious misdemeanor penalties is as easy for refs as counting the number of steps before a hit or watching how high players' elbows are before contact.

Other penalties are more difficult to spot since legal checking is such a prominent part of the game. Knowing where and how to hit within the rules makes a team's defense twice as effective, and knowing how to coach against teams who take more than an average amount of penalties vastly increases offensive potential.

"Of course there are ways to put other teams in positions to take penalties," Gadowsky said. "It depends on what kind of team they are. There are different kinds of penalties — whether they get flustered and take roughing calls or are slow and are getting hooking and tripping calls and are forced to use the stick".

This year, the NCAA has tightened down on penalty regulations, particularly with respect to hooking. While a leg check or an elbow might get hidden in a corner scuffle, it's hard to hide your stick — especially when the referee is looking for it.

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The NCAA rule states that "a player shall not impede the progress of an opponent by hooking with the stick or by using the stick in a reverse position to obtain the puck or prevent the opponent from playing the puck." Hooking, which results in a two-minute minor penalty, was a relatively uncommon call before, but it has become increasingly prevalent.

The new, more stringent rules have not discouraged the Tigers from a hard-hitting, full-contact mentality, however. Princeton has already committed 155 penalties this year — well below its opponents, who have combined for 174 penalties to date.

While coaches and teachers alike stress the importance of staying out of the box, players will always find themselves in it.