Glossary: The Slot

When you put a coin in a slot, you expect something good to happen—you get to make a phone call (remember payphones?), choose a piece of candy, buy a soda. It's the same in the hockey: good things happen from the slot. That's why hockey play-by-play, coaching and general chatter is chockfull of excited references to the “slot.” If you don’t know what the slot is, it’s hard to tell what they’re talking about much less why they’re so excited about it. And coaches, players and fans have good reason to be excited about the slot as it’s the area from which most goals are scored.



The slot is located directly in front of the goaltender between the two faceoff circles on each side. If you think of the definition of slot as a narrow passage, you can see why the small area between the two faceoff circles is called the slot. The deep slot refers to the area at the top of the circles—furthest from the goaltender—where players might hover waiting for the chance to move towards the net and score.

See it in action: Check out Detroit Red Wings player, Pavel Datsyuk, fake out opponents and move into the slot to make a spectacular goal.



Editor’s Note: Thank you to Kristin Carlson, member of Women’s Hockey Association of Minnesota, for this article, and to score100goals.com for the image.
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