{"id":2427,"date":"2026-07-15T10:11:34","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T10:11:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hamcospo.com\/blog\/?p=2427"},"modified":"2026-07-15T10:15:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T10:15:19","slug":"how-long-is-a-hockey-period","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hamcospo.com\/blog\/how-long-is-a-hockey-period\/","title":{"rendered":"How Long Is a Hockey Period? Time on Ice vs Time on the Clock"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Quick Answer<\/strong> A hockey period is 20 minutes of clock time, and a game has three of them, so a full game is 60 minutes on the clock. Because the clock stops on every whistle, the real time you sit in the stands is closer to 2 hours and 30 minutes. Hockey uses three periods, not quarters. Youth and high school periods are shorter.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you are new to hockey, the clock is the first thing that confuses you. The scoreboard says 20 minutes, the game lasts almost three hours, and nobody explains the gap. So how long is a hockey period? Twenty minutes of clock time at the top levels, and three of those make a full game. The longer answer, which matters if you are planning a night out or a rink pickup, is that clock time and real time are very different things, as any parent staring at our gear<\/a> checklist at 6am already suspects. Here is the full breakdown by level.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, the question people are almost too shy to ask: how many quarters in hockey? None. Hockey does not use quarters at all. It is divided into three periods, which trips up fans coming from basketball or football. So if you were wondering how many periods in hockey, the answer is three, whether you are watching the NHL or a squad still picking team names<\/a>. The table below lays out the length at every level, then we walk through each one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Level<\/strong><\/td>Periods<\/strong><\/td>Each<\/strong><\/td>Game Clock<\/strong><\/td>Overtime<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><\/thead>
NHL<\/strong><\/td>3<\/strong><\/td>20 min<\/strong><\/td>60 min<\/td>5 min at 3 on 3, then a shootout<\/td><\/tr>
NCAA college<\/strong><\/td>3<\/strong><\/td>20 min<\/strong><\/td>60 min<\/td>5 min sudden death in the regular season<\/td><\/tr>
High school<\/strong><\/td>3<\/strong><\/td>15 to 17 min<\/strong><\/td>45 to 51 min<\/td>Varies by state<\/td><\/tr>
Youth (Peewee, Bantam)<\/strong><\/td>3<\/strong><\/td>12 to 15 min<\/strong><\/td>36 to 45 min<\/td>Often none<\/td><\/tr>
Mite and 8U<\/strong><\/td>Cross ice, running clock<\/strong><\/td>short<\/strong><\/td>Fits the ice slot<\/td>None<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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