Table Hockey Strategies

The Basics

• The game is played on a tabletop with two players competing. Each player has plastic or metal players controlled by moving thin metal rods. Three of the players are forwards, two are defensemen and one is a goalie. The forwards and defensemen move up and down the plastic "ice" while the goalie moves side to side. The object is to put a small plastic puck behind the goaltender. In table hockey, the first one to 10 wins.

Top Scoring Play

• One of the best ways to score is to shuttle the puck into your attack half of the ice. Your opponent has two defensemen and his goalie. If you can send it into the corner, one of the wings can pick up the puck and line a perfect pass to the center. If the center gets it quickly, he can fire a quick shot from the middle of the offensive zone or you can have him charge the goal and ram a shot on net. The defensemen do not have the range in table hockey to stop the center once he has received the pass and has it on his stick. The defense's goal is to keep one of the wings from making the pass to the middle.

Scoring from the Wing

• While the wings are good passers when they get the puck in deep in the offensive zone, they are good scorers when they get it just past the blue line. The wings can score quickly after taking a pass from the defense and putting the puck on the forehand side of the player. If you twist your wrist hard just after the player crosses the blue line, he will deliver a very hard shot on goal. The other way a wing can score is when the puck is deep in the corner. While your opponent may be expecting a pass to the center, you can send the puck the opposite way and it will careen around the boards and end up on the opposite wing's stick. That wing can then quickly get rid of the puck for a great scoring opportunity.

Deflections

• Veteran table hockey players know their center is capable of deflecting a shot past the goalie. This is best done when one of the defensemen has the puck. Swing the defenseman's stick so the puck goes hard down the table top toward the center. If his stick is point at the center of the goal, the shot will deflect off the shaft of his stick and into the near corner of the net. This is almost impossible for the goalie to defend.