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Body checking in hockey: legal hits, illegal checks and penalties

By Étienne ParadisEditor, guides Fact-checked by Catherine Dubé Updated

A body check is a hit with the upper body to separate an opponent from the puck. In Quebec French it is called a mise en échec, and it is legal in the NHL as long as it stays inside the rules on boarding, charging, elbows, knees and the head. Here is what makes a check legal, which hits draw a penalty and how long each penalty lasts under the NHL's 2025-26 Official Rules, where checking starts in minor hockey, and what a big hit can change for a bettor.

Body checking at a glance

Term French (Quebec) What it means
Body check mise en échec, plaquage Contact with the upper body to make the puck carrier lose the puck or slow down
Forecheck échec avant Pressure by the team without the puck in the opponent's defensive zone
Cross-check double-échec Hitting an opponent with the stick held in both hands
Boarding mise en échec contre la bande Driving a defenceless player violently into the boards
Check from behind mise en échec par derrière A hit on a player who does not see it coming
Illegal check to the head mise en échec illégale à la tête A hit where the head is the main point of contact

What is a body check?

The Office québécois de la langue française defines a mise en échec as physical contact with the upper body to make an opponent lose the puck, or to slow or stop him. Its terminology record adds the limits most players learn early: the hit comes from the shoulder or the hip, it lands between the knees and the neck, and the player being hit must have the puck or be right next to it.

That last point is what separates a check from interference. Under NHL Rule 56, a player who impedes an opponent who does not have the puck can be called for interference. Players who finish a check a beat too late, after the pass is gone, are the usual culprits.

Not every "check" in hockey is a hit. A poke check uses the stick to knock the puck away, and a stick lift raises the opponent's stick to steal the puck. The OQLF also lists échec avant, the forecheck, as pressure in the other team's zone, usually by the forwards. Hockey people in Quebec use both words every night, so it helps to know which one a commentator means.

  • Shoulder check. The most common hit: shoulder into the chest or side of the puck carrier, elbow tucked in. An elbow that comes out turns it into elbowing.
  • Hip check. The checker bends low and swings a hip into the puck carrier, often along the boards. A hip check at or below the knees is clipping.
  • Rubbing out along the boards. A defender angles the puck carrier into the boards and pins him to win the puck back. It is legal as long as the player is not driven violently into the glass.

Which hits are penalties in the NHL?

Each illegal hit has its own rule, and the referee chooses the penalty based on how violent the hit was and whether a player was injured.

Infraction NHL rule Minor (2 min) Major (5 min) Notes
Boarding 41 Yes Yes Game misconduct with a major that injures the face or head
Charging 42 Yes Yes Covers skating or jumping into an opponent
Checking from behind 43 No Yes Every major comes with a game misconduct
Clipping 44 Yes Yes, if it injures Game misconduct with an injury major
Elbowing 45 Yes Yes Game misconduct with a major that injures the face or head
Illegal check to the head 48 Yes No Match penalty possible if intent to injure
Kneeing 50 Yes Yes Every major comes with a game misconduct
Cross-checking 59 Yes Yes Every major comes with a game misconduct

Every one of these rules also allows a match penalty when the referee judges that the player tried to injure, or deliberately injured, an opponent.

A few definitions from the rulebook are worth knowing word for word. Boarding is checking or pushing a defenceless opponent so that he hits the boards violently or dangerously. A check from behind is a hit on a player who is not aware of it coming, and the NHL has no minor penalty for it. An illegal check to the head is a hit where the head was the main point of contact; the 2025-26 rules allow a minor or a match penalty for it, but no major.

How long each penalty lasts

  • Minor: two minutes, no substitute. It ends early if the other team scores on the power play.
  • Major: five minutes, no substitute (Rule 20.1). It does not end when the other team scores, so the full five minutes are played short.
  • Game misconduct: the player is out for the rest of the game, but a substitute can replace him (Rule 23.1). When it comes with a major, the team still kills the five minutes.
  • Match penalty: the player goes straight to the dressing room for the rest of the game, and a substitute can go on only after five minutes of playing time (Rule 21).

The NHL tightened the head-hit rule in steps. Blind-side and lateral hits to the head were first banned in 2010-11, the rule was widened in 2011-12, and in 2013-14 it was clarified so that a hit where the head was the main point of contact, and the contact was avoidable, is not allowed.

When does body checking start in minor hockey?

Not at the youngest levels. At its 2013 annual general meeting in Charlottetown, Hockey Canada's board voted to remove body checking from peewee (under 13) hockey across the country, starting in the 2013-14 season. Only the Saskatchewan Hockey Association voted against.

Quebec was already there. CBC's report on the vote cites Alberta research that found a three-fold increase in the risk of injury for peewee players who were allowed to check there, compared with Quebec, where checking was not allowed until bantam.

In women's hockey, body checking is an illegal hit under IIHF rules. The PWHL is the exception in North America: it has allowed checking since it began play in January 2024, under tight limits.

Body checking is part of the game in major junior hockey; our QMJHL (LHJMQ) guide covers Quebec's top junior league, its 18 teams and its playoff format.

Big hits and your bets

A hit by itself does not settle any common market, but what follows a hit often does:

  • Majors change totals. A five-minute major means five minutes of power play that a goal does not end. Live totals and next-goal prices move the moment the penalty is called, and the market is often suspended while it reprices. Our guide to live betting during hockey games explains how.
  • Ejections change player props. A player who gets a game misconduct or a match penalty stops adding shots and points. Check your book's house rules on how a prop bet on that player settles once he is out of the game.
  • Hits are a stat. The NHL records hits in its official game stats, and some books post props on them. Our guide to NHL player props covers how those settle.

For the other whistles that change a game, our guide to offside and icing covers the blue line and the coach's challenge. In Quebec, Mise-o-jeu is Loto-Québec's legal sports betting platform. Set a deposit limit before game night and only bet what you can afford to lose.

Sources

Key terms

Totals (over/under)
You bet on the total goals both teams score combined, over or under the number the book sets, without caring who wins.
Live betting
Betting while the game is on, with odds that change after every goal, penalty and period until the final horn.
Prop bet
A bet on something that happens inside the game, like a goalie's saves or a player's shots, instead of the final score.
Mise-o-jeu
Mise-o-jeu is Loto-Québec's sports betting brand: paper slips at lottery retailers and Mise-o-jeu+ online, for players 18+ who are in Quebec.
Deposit limit
A cap ("limite de dépôt") you pick for how much money can go into one casino account in a day, a week or a month.

Frequently asked questions

What is a body check in hockey?
A hit with the shoulder or hip on the puck carrier, between the knees and the neck, to separate him from the puck or slow him down. In Quebec French it is called a mise en échec.
Is body checking legal in the NHL?
Yes, as long as the player being hit has the puck or is right next to it, and the hit does not break the rules on boarding, charging, elbowing, kneeing, clipping, cross-checking, checking from behind or the head.
What is the penalty for checking from behind in the NHL?
There is no minor for it. Under Rule 43, it is a five-minute major with an automatic game misconduct, or a match penalty if the referee judges the player tried to injure his opponent.
Is a hit to the head always a penalty?
Under Rule 48, a hit where the head was the main point of contact draws a minor penalty, or a match penalty when the player attempted to or deliberately injured the opponent. The rule has no major penalty.
At what age does body checking start in minor hockey in Canada?
Hockey Canada removed body checking from peewee (under 13) hockey starting in 2013-14. In Quebec, checking was already not allowed before bantam at the time of that vote.
What is the difference between a mise en échec and an échec avant?
A mise en échec is a body check. An échec avant is the forecheck: pressure by the team without the puck in the other team's zone, usually by the forwards.