Rule 615. Handling Puck With Hands

1. If a player, except a goalkeeper, closes his hand on the puck, play shall be stopped and a face-off shall follow; however, if the puck is dropped to the ice immediately, play shall not be stopped.

   If a goalkeeper holds the puck with his hand for more than three seconds, play shall be stopped and a face-off shall follow; however, after an initial warning by the Referee, a goalkeeper who holds the puck unnecessarily shall be assessed a minor penalty for delay of game.

2. A goalkeeper shall not drop the puck into his pads or onto the goal net, nor deliberately pile up snow or obstacles at or near his goal that, in the opinion of the Referee, would tend to prevent the scoring of a goal. The penalty for infringement of this rule by the goalkeeper shall be a minor penalty.

   (Note 1) The object of this rule is to keep the puck in play continuously and any action taken by the goalkeeper which causes an unnecessary stoppage must be penalized.

   (Note 2) The goalkeeper may not leave his stick or part thereof in front of his goal. If he does and if the puck hits the stick thereby preventing an obvious and imminent goal while the goalkeeper is on the ice, but in the act of leaving the ice, or off the ice, the Referee shall stop play and award a goal to the non-offending team. See Rule 621(f), Interference.

3. If a goalkeeper catches the puck and throws it forward toward his opponent's goal and it is first played by a teammate, play shall be stopped and the ensuing face-off shall be held at the nearest end zone face-off spot of the offending team. (See also Rule 615(e).)

4. A minor penalty shall be imposed on a player except the goalkeeper who, while play is in progress, picks up the puck off the ice with his hand.

   If a defending player, except the goalkeeper, while play is in progress, picks up the puck with his hand from the ice in the goal crease, or holds the puck while the puck is in the goal crease, the play shall be stopped immediately and a penalty shot/optional minor shall be awarded to the non-offending team.

   If a defending player picks up the puck from the goal crease or falls on or covers the puck in the goal crease thereby causing a stoppage of play when the goalkeeper has been removed from the ice, a goal shall be awarded to the non-offending team.

5. A player or goalkeeper shall be permitted to stop or ``bat'' the puck in the air with his hand or push it along the ice with his hand and play shall not be stopped unless he has directed the puck to a teammate in any zone other than his Defending Zone, in which case play shall be stopped and the puck faced-off at the spot where the offense occurred unless otherwise provided by these rules.

   (Note) No territorial ice advantage can be gained from a team illegally batting the puck with the hand.

   A goal shall not be allowed if the puck was propelled by the hand of an attacking player and entered the goal either directly or after deflecting off any player including the goalkeeper.