Ringette, Explained.

A fast, full-contact-free ice sport played by six players with a hollow rubber ring. Here's everything you need to know.

Watch Ringette In Action

Ringette is a six-a-side ice sport played with a hollow rubber ring instead of a puck and a straight tapered stick that slides inside the ring. It's fast, no-contact, and built on constant passing.
Watch A Game

How It's Played

Six players on each side: two defense, two forwards, a centre, and a goalie. 

Ringette, like hockey, is played on ice with skates and sticks, and six players per team on the ice at once. The objective is to score goals by shooting a ring into the opposing team’s net at either end of the rink. Unlike hockey however, the stick is straight without a blade, and a round rubber ring with a hole at its center is used instead of a puck. There is no intentional body contact. There are no face-offs; instead teams are awarded ring possession. Games are stop time and a 30-second shot clock (introduced in 2000) contributes to the game’s reputation as the fastest on ice!

Four Rules That Change The Game

The 30-second Shot Clock

From the moment your team gains possession, you have 30 seconds to take a shot on net. If you don’t, you lose the ring. This single rule is what makes ringette feel like it’s running at double speed compared to hockey.

You have to pass over the blue line

You cannot carry the ring across either blue line. It’s an automatic turnover if you try. That means every player on the ice needs to be moving, looking for open lanes, and ready to receive a pass at all times.

The free play line

Only three skaters per team are allowed deep in the offensive zone at any given time. This opens up the ice dramatically and rewards teams that move the ring intelligently rather than just piling bodies in front of the net.

No Body Contact

Checking, tripping, and hitting all draw penalties. The game is won through skating, stickwork, and tactical play. Don’t confuse "no contact" with "not tough" though. These athletes are skating 25+ mph and the pace is absolutely brutal.

Why We Love It

  • There's no hiding.

    The 30-second shot clock and the blue-line pass rule mean everyone touches the ring, every shift. No one player can carry the game. No one player can disappear in it either.

  • It rewards the skaters who think.

    Ringette is a chess match at full speed. The players who see the next pass before they've made the last one — those are the ones who run the game.

  • It's fast in a way that's hard to explain until you watch it.

    Constant passing, constant motion, a clock that never lets up. There's no neutral-zone trap, no stalling, no boring stretches.

  • No body contact, no soft sport. 

    Players hit 25+ mph on skates. The pace is relentless. The sport is decided by edges and stickwork, not collisions — which makes it sharper, not softer.

  • It was built by women, for women, from the ground up.

    Sixty years in, ringette is still one of the few elite-level sports that wasn't borrowed, adapted, or handed down. That part still matters.

Ready To Start?

Whether you want to lace up, pitch in, or just follow along — we'd love to have you.
Contact Us