page_title: Roller in-line hockey
section_title: Offensive tactics
hierarchical_section_title: Roller in-line hockey / Tactics / Offensive tactics
caption_attribution_description: English: Inline hockey players from Brazil.
context_page_description: Roller inline hockey, or inline hockey is a variant of hockey played on a hard, smooth surface, with players using inline skates to move and hockey sticks to shoot a hard, plastic puck into their opponent's goal to score points. There are five players including the goalkeeper from each team on the rink at a time, while teams normally consist of 16 players.
  Inline hockey is a very fast-paced and free-flowing game. It is considered a contact sport but body checking is prohibited. However, there are exceptions to that with the NRHL which involves fighting. Unlike ice hockey, there are no blue lines or defensive zones in roller hockey. This means that, according to most rule codes, there are no offsides or icings that can occur during game play. This along with fewer players on the rink allows for faster game play. There are traditionally two 20-minute periods or four 10-minute periods with a stopped clock.
  In the United States, the highest governing body for the sport is USA Roller Sports. USARS is credited with the development of the present-day rules and regulations that is used throughout multiple tournament series.
context_section_description: Offensive tactics include improving a team's position on the floor by advancing the puck towards the opponent's goal. FIRS rules have no offside or two-line passes. A player may pass the puck to a player on any spot on the floor. Offensive tactics, are designed ultimately to score a goal by taking a shot. When a player purposely directs the puck towards the opponent's goal, he or she is said to "shoot" the puck.
  A deflection is a shot which redirects a shot or a pass towards the goal from another player, by allowing the puck to strike the stick and carom towards the goal. A one-timer is a shot which is struck directly off a pass, without receiving the pass and shooting in two separate actions. Headmanning the puck, also known as cherry-picking, the stretch pass or breaking out, is the tactic of rapidly passing to the player farthest down the floor.
  A team that is losing by one or two goals in the last few minutes of play will often elect to pull the goalie; that is, remove the goaltender and replace him or her with an extra attacker on the floor in the hope of gaining enough advantage to score a goal. However, it is an act of desperation, as it sometimes leads to the opposing team extending their lead by scoring a goal in the empty net.
  A delayed penalty call occurs when a penalty offense is committed by the team that does not have possession of the puck. In this circumstance the team with possession of the puck is allowed to complete the play; that is, play continues until a goal is scored, a player on the opposing team gains control of the puck, or the team in possession commits an infraction or penalty of their own. Because the team on which the penalty was called cannot control the puck without stopping play, it is impossible for them to score a goal, however, it is possible for the controlling team to mishandle the puck into their own net. In these cases the team in possession of the puck can pull the goalie for an extra attacker without fear of being scored on. If a delayed penalty is signaled and the team in possession scores, the penalty is still assessed to the offending player, but not served.
  One of the most important strategies for a team is their forecheck. Forechecking is the act of attacking the opposition in their defensive zone. Forechecking is an important part of roller hockey, because certain leagues and rules allow teams that have possession of the puck to sit behind their net and wait until they are pressured before having to advance the puck. Each team will use their own unique forecheck system but the main ones are: 1–1–2, 1–2–1, and 1–3. The 1–1–2 is the most basic forecheck system where one forward will go in deep and pressure the opposition's defencemen, the second forward stays in the slot, and the two defencemen high. The 1–3 is the most defensive forecheck system where one forward will apply pressure to the puck carrier in the opponent's zone and the other three players stand basically in a line in their defensive zone in hopes the opposition will skate into one of them.
  Roller hockey is unique in that its rules resemble more of a basketball/soccer/lacrosse strategy in many ways versus a traditional ice hockey approach.
  There are many other little tactics used in the game of hockey. Pinching is the term used when a defenceman pressures the opposition's winger in the offensive zone when they are breaking out, attempting to stop their attack and keep the puck in the offensive zone. A saucer pass is a pass used when an opposition's stick or body is in the passing lane. It is the act of raising the puck over the obstruction and having it land on a teammates' stick.
caption: Two brazilian players getting ready for a faceoff during practice
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