Ice hockey, often referred to simply as hockey in the United States, Canada, Russia and Sweden, is a team sport played on ice. It is a speedy and physical sport. Ice hockey is most popular in areas that are sufficiently cold for natural, reliable seasonal ice cover, though with the advent of indoor artificial ice rinks it has become a year-round pastime at the amateur level in major metropolitan areas such as cities that host a National Hockey League (NHL) or other professional-league team.

While the general characteristics of the game are the same wherever it is played, the exact rules depend on the particular code of play being used. The two most important codes are those of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and of the North American National Hockey League (NHL).

Ice hockey is played on a hockey rink. During normal play, there are six players per side on the ice at any time, each of whom is on ice skates. There are five players and one goaltender per side. The objective of the game is to score goals by shooting a hard vulcanized rubber disc, the puck, into the opponent's goal net, which is placed at the opposite end of the rink. The players may control the puck using a long stick with a blade that is commonly curved at one end.

A player is said to shoot left if he holds his stick with the left hand on the bottom and the right hand on top, and is said to be right shot if he holds the stick with the right hand at the bottom and left hand on top. Most right-handed players (that is, in general, players who write, eat, and throw with their right hand) shoot left and most left-handed players shoot right. This is because the bottom hand delivers most of the power while the top hand is responsible for control and stickhandling. Having the dominant hand at the top of the stick allows the player to have greater control and reach when wielding the stick one-handed, although many players prefer to shoot with their dominant hand. Goalies usually hold their stick with their dominant hand on top and their less-dominant hand is used for catching and is placed on the stick below the other hand only when stickhandling the puck.

Players may also redirect the puck with any part of their bodies, subject to certain restrictions. Players can angle their feet so the puck can redirect into the net, but there can be no kicking motion. Players may not intentionally bat the puck into the net with their hands.